


The Darkblade

by GoblinGraveyard



Series: Tales In Kirus [1]
Category: Original Work, Tales in Kirus
Genre: Ancestors, Blood, Bloodlust, Canon Lesbian Character, Character Turned Into Vampire, Fantasy, Fictional Religion & Theology, Inspired by DnD, LGBTQ Character of Color, LGBTQ Female Character, Magic, Military Background, Supernatural - Freeform, Supernatural Elements, Unbury Your Gays, Vampire Turning, bloodlines, vampire, want to read about a scrappy dead lesbian with a sword?Have this, young adult
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-26
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 08:01:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 39,640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23468065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoblinGraveyard/pseuds/GoblinGraveyard
Summary: Cooper was a good Templar. She was trained to be the Best. The best fighter, the best leader, and the best at dying for the country she was left in, but her story doesn't stop because her life has.When she finds herself stranded in a now foreign country, she has no option but to join a group of adventurers on their quest to hunt down an ancient relic, and unearth a foe that has not been seen in centuries.
Series: Tales In Kirus [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1688266
Kudos: 3





	1. Prologue

The city of Kingshill was a shining example of Queen Fraxinus's praise. On the ground lay polished marble pathways next to roads that were glossy, black, and free of holes. Doves flew freely as the symbol of the royal family, and in turn, the city was spotless with cleaners sweeping up after their mess. Strong stone buildings stood proudly, offering housing and different shops open at all hours of the day. It was colourful, far more so than the rest of Syi Dorei, in an attempt to match Farzan, the true royal city in Astria. Though the Queen's gaze indeed got the city far, it wasn't without its underbelly. The south edge of Kingshill that bled softly into Greyhaven was a colourless waste. The buildings were left to fall apart, many without windows or doors. Smoke drifted through from fires lit to light the way, curling its way towards the gravesite for those fallen in the Mage Rebellion - a war that had only come to a close a decade before.  
The Switchboard sat on the edge of the bustling city, as the beating heart of the rundown underbelly. Its walls were tall and built in the outdated style of the old King, and haphazardly painted a gaudy shade of red. Bright, neon signs led passersby to the entrance of the Club, a sight common to the cities of Shales but not to the country of Mabristan. The old boarding house was a hungry being, attracting many customers with the promise of alcohol when the skies darkened into night.  
The Switchboard stood proudly, a streak of colour amongst the worn-down houses and old businesses that had been shut for many years prior. Music emanated from the old building. and could be heard several streets away. Coloured lights flashed to the beat from behind the heavy black shutters on the windows. Inside, the bar was filled with young adults who were glad for an excuse to let off steam midweek.

Cooper swung her legs absentmindedly over the side of the table, teeth tearing into the hard flesh of an apple. Her head swam through the haze of alcohol and the contents of the pipe she had smoked to fit into the normalcy she didn't belong.  
The table jostled as another joined her side. A tall man with yellow hair and golden skin, a tipsy grin tugging at his face from under his scraggly brown stubble. He was as barrel-chested as she was, with a few extra inches of height over her but nowhere near the tallest person in the room that night. Casper Young. One of her many dorm mates at the academy. He propped himself up to sit on the table next to her, spilling a generous amount of alcohol down his leg as he went.  
"Last night! How are you holding up?" he asked, his voice itself could carry an excited grin that didn't match the tangle of nerves that ate away at Cooper's stomach.  
"Good," she nodded, a weak wobbling smile tucking at the corners of her lips, "terrified. Haven't left the city in a while."

It wasn't a complete truth, and Casper could easily call her out on it since he had known her longer than almost anyone. He instead took a long swig from his bottle, before offering her a taste. The alcohol burned on its way down. The bad, raw type of burn you'd feel after vomiting. Cooper did _not_ enjoy drinking. She took another sip and passed the almost-empty bottle back to her friend.  
Casper finished the dregs of whatever they were drinking. Ale, he had said sometime earlier that night, but whether or not that was his current drink of choice, Cooper had no idea. "You all set though? Feels like you've been packing for weeks."  
She had been. Anxiously unpacking and repacking, double-checking that she was ready for the trip. She didn't have many possessions, just her armour and weapons, a book on her faith, one set of heavily worn boots, and two sets of clothes - one of which she was currently wearing. Roughspun brown trousers, a one plain white and another deep purple long-sleeve tunic. She hadn't been allowed much in the Temple of Omera.  
"I think I'm ready. Physically, that is" she sighed, "mentally? I'm all over the place. I don't want to leave. To change."  
"Change?"  
"I've heard the stories of the Ironwood Forest. I know it's only folklore but...even then, this is my first real _quest_ , the first time for me to leave Syi Dorei since I landed on Mabrisian soil. What if...what if I'm different coming back?What if..." She trailed off, her gaze following a short woman who danced happily amongst the strangers. She was strongly built, with cascading caramel hair and her eyes of odd colours - one a dark, honeyed brown while the other a blue as deep as the sea itself.  
"Jordan's going to wait for you, you know," said Casper softly over the music, as if plucking the thought from Cooper's mind. "She... she really cares about you, for some reason. You two will be fine."  
Cooper snorted and punched his arm playfully, only to receive a light shove in return. He may have been right, she and Jordan had been dating on and off for the past few years, since they had met at sixteen. Their relationship was secret outside of the residents of their two respective dorms, neither of them could face their home life if it had come out. Jordan whose father was the owner of Lindys Enterprises who sponsored the Academy and supplied them with weapons, and Cooper whose life belonged to the Goddess of Death.

Cooper watched her friends mingle and drink from the comfort of the table, leaving her apple core rolling on the bartop. At some point, Casper had left to party with the others, and a drink was pushed into her hand by the owner of the bar, Lainey, with a wink. She sipped at the cold beverage, soothing her throat from whatever the hell Casper had made her drink. It wasn't anything she had tasted before, not that she had much experience in anything besides fighting. It was sweet, unlike the tang of flame that came with anything else she had drunk that night. She knocked it back quickly and left the safety of isolation for the dancefloor. She pushed past the friends-of-friends; a small, scrawny blue-haired woman ducked into the arms of a far taller winged woman, both of which scowled at her as she moved past. Cooper nodded, uncomfortably smiling as the guise of an apology.  
Her dorm mates were scattered. Casper and Todd were at the far end of the room, laughing and throwing playful jabs at each other, successfully spilling their drinks as they went. Tally, Rachel, and her boyfriend, Leon, were at the bar, serving themselves drinks as Lainey made the rounds. Cooper finally caught up with Jordan after pushing through the crowd. If this was her last night in Mabristan, she figured she should at least be allowed to spend a portion of it with her girlfriend, away from the prying eyes of the Temple that only sees her love as an inconvenience at best. Cooper tapped the far shorter woman on the shoulder to grab her attention. Jordan whirled around, eyes alight as if prepared to fight whoever had snuck up on her. Her surprise was short-lived as her expression softened to a small smile.  
"Alexx!" she said, the name dancing on her tongue, causing Cooper to avert her gaze as her face reddened. Her name. Her girlfriend was the only one who called her that. The only one who dared. Jordan laughed, holding onto Cooper's hand and running her thumb over the taller woman's knuckles. "Too loud in here?"  
Cooper reluctantly nodded, voice caught in her throat. It felt as if a lead ball had forced itself up to sit in the back of her mouth as her bones thundered with the throbbing beat of the music. Jordan mouthed something that might have been an 'okay' with a grin, shifting her hand to instead be comfortably on Cooper's waist.  
"Let's get out of here, yeah?"

Cooper was rudely awoken by the sounds of pans clattering to the floor. With her heart in her throat, she leapt from the soft confines of her bed. Hastily tugging a long tunic over her bare chest, and grabbing hold of a pole that leaned against the bedside table, she rushed out the door and into the shared kitchen.  
Her defensive stance was short-lived as she took in the situation before her. Jordan knelt before an open cupboard, fighting to keep the saucepans in their place. With one final push, she closed the door and leant her back up against it, heaving a sigh before making eye contact with Cooper.  
"Oh, mornin'," she said, voice slurred with sleep. "did I wake you?"  
"Yeah, but that's okay" Cooper smiled, moving to help up her girlfriend.  
"Gods you two are gross," huffed Alyx Sculli from the kitchen table, hiding her expression in a coffee cup, "it's way too early for this."  
Cooper grinned sheepishly at the seven-foot-tall demon with the wingspan to match, muttering a half baked apology that she didn't truly mean under her breath. It might have been early, but it _was_ also Cooper's last day in Kingshill for a while. She figured she was allowed to be as gross and domestic as she wanted.  
"Ugh, I think I ruined your breakfast" sighed Jordan, scrubbing her hands down her face, "I'm sorry, Al"  
"You know I'll eat it anyway-"  
"That's not the _point_ , I wanted to do something nice for you," Jordan refused to meet Cooper's concerned eyes. "I'm not going to see you for months, wanted to give you a good send-off before I-"  
Jordan cut herself off, head hung disheartened. Cooper pulled her into a tight hug. It's not that she didn't know that Jordan was saddened by her leaving, she had been as well, but she never considered that Jordan would be _this_ upset. Which of course, looking back on it, was a dense way of looking at it.

Jordan let out a shuddering breath, burying her face in Cooper's chest. Alyx groaned and left the table, shuffling off back to her bedroom with a huff. Not that Cooper could blame her, Alyx had always seemed averse to relationships in general, not just hers. Cooper awkwardly patted Jordan's back, unsure how to comfort her properly. She couldn't stay, no matter what she had wanted personally.  
The Queen had asked for her squadron personally, at least that's that she had been told. She may not have been Mabrisian or even liked the Queen's existence, but to defy was treason, and she had to think about her future.  
Jordan finally let go, wiping her eyes and giving Cooper a small smile. Cooper smiled sadly back. She wanted to say something, anything, but she wasn't sure that any of her words, no matter how well-meaning, would help the situation.  
"Oh, hey, I got you something," said Jordan softly, voice crackling, "now might be the last chance I get to give it to you before you leave."  
"You really didn't have to-"  
"Of course I did"

Jordan left the kitchen, returning with a thin chain in her hands. She held out a thin chain to Cooper, hand closed and covering the pendant. Cooper looked at her curiously, eyebrows knitted together.  
"I gotta ask you something-" Jordan's voice came out soft, barely a sound, "- I've wanted to ask for _months_ , but I never knew how. Guess I just have to come out and say it."  
"Jordan-?" asked Cooper, hands closing over Jordan's, her hands dwarfing Jordan's.  
"Just...just let me say it before I lose my nerve."  
Jordan let out a long sigh, steeling herself for what she had planned. Cooper stared at her with a blank expression, not sure how to proceed.  
"Alexx, look, I know that you're with the Temple and they have their own rules and expectations or whatever - but I want to spend my life with you, whatever that means. So, yeah. That's it. What do you say?"  
Cooper paused, staring in disbelief. They had spoken about it in the past, what their lives together would mean, and if Jordan would be comfortable with Cooper having to keep her a secret to keep them both safe. Ultimately, she knew what her answer was.  
"Till death do us part, right?"  
Jordan smiled softly, gently laying the necklace in Cooper's hands. On it a single, plain golden ring of a simple fashion. Cooper had never owned anything so beautiful.  
"Till death do us part."


	2. 1

The heart of the Ironwood Forest was cold and unforgiving. Blankets upon blankets of snow were piled to the point that the tents the squadron had pulled up for the night had been covered. Cooper sat outside of her sorry excuse for a tent, eyes barely open and sword drawn as the remaining members of her group slowly woke up and exited their tents to the bright morning sun. They had been here for months, following orders from their Queen - not directly, of course, but she wanted the job done and no one else wanted to do it so of course, it fell to this specific group of ass kissers. Cooper herself never wanted to be here, she would have been happy enough to be left in a tavern a few miles away, Naveer had plenty of them so why wasn't she allowed to indulge? The Temple, of course, demanded against her whims. They might not have a claw in her life currently, but they'd still look bad if one of their Templars went off the rails in the ways she wished. She only wanted to return home to live life with her lover, who waited upon her return.  
Why was her squadron chosen to search for the runaway Princen? It was something that Cooper had wondered many times, with no apparent answer. She had even asked her Knight-Captain, Mycah Hawkins, her only answer being 'it needs to be done'. Vague. Cooper didn't appreciate it but knew that was all she'd get out of her Captain.

Fraxinus wasn't her Queen, not truly. Unlike the rest of them, she was not some Mabrisian pillock, she was from Shales. She might have been raised in a Temple in Mabristan since she was eight years old, she might even have had the Syi Dorian accent, but she was born in Adanak and for that she was proud. She didn't truly believe in their parasite god, despite the fear of being thrown their holy book. She might have been raised as their Templar, but she was no fool. At least to her knowledge. They taught their book, their beliefs, and gave her a sword and told her to fight for them. Cooper wasn't sure what they had expected. But she had trained for over a decade to wield the bloody thing. She became good at it. What they wanted after was a mystery to her.  
The Queen must never have expected her to be lost in a forest, especially following the orders of one as loyal and skilled as their Knight-Captain. That was Cooper's rank once, but she didn't miss it. Hawkins was a far better leader, and Cooper had been tired of giving orders to a woman five years her senior. The Captain was a private woman, who looked like she could have easily been related to Cooper, with the same dark hair, tanned skin, and plastering of freckles that covered their visible body. Cooper thanked whichever of the Gods or Creators that were listening that they weren't. She would have hated being told off by her own family. All Cooper truly knew was that the older woman was of low birth, much like herself and the rest of the squadron, and that she despised it to the point that she joined the Temple to cleanse herself.

She might not have known much about her Captain, but she was lucky enough to have at least one of her friends in her squadron. The Queen's bastard daughter, Aiden Fowler who used to tag along with Casper to hang around the Temple for lack of better things to occupy their time, had become the archer to the team. She had brought along another from Stykes, a young half-dwarven man who called himself Robin Miller. Cooper hadn't met him before now, as a Temple she rarely mixed with the others, she was lucky that she found friends within her dorm mates and their extensions.  
Robin, as it turned out, had been a better navigator than a fighter. Lucky too, since no one else even vaguely knew how to handle a bow, and Cooper knew she couldn't read a map to save her life. Cooper was sure that Ned, the final remnants of their squadron, couldn't even read. Not that she could judge. No one even knew him well enough to know his background, despite travelling with the bastard for months. He never opened up to anyone else so they all let him be. Knew his name was Keith Nedley, and he was a half-elf mage, that's the best they ever got. Casper has been asked to join their squadron, and he almost agreed until his father stepped in and said that the woods were no place for a viscount. Earl Young was a stubborn man, and Casper had reluctantly followed his orders.  
Throughout the trip down to the forest, Ned had mostly complained about the amount of elven-blooded people in the squadron. Which to be fair, there were a few. Aiden, a full-blooded elf, before their deaths there was Damien and Jeremy the half-elves, even Cooper herself had a small trace of elven heritage in her blood, just enough to be visible. The slightly pointed ears and the thicker bridge of the nose was a clear sign of her heritage, but ultimately she was human.

Hawkins had taken to stomping out what was left of the fire, as the others started packing away their supplies. Cooper was given a cup of water and a pat on the back from Aiden before she too was expected to help the others.  
A slow process; pulling out the branches they started using to keep the tent standing, folding away their sleeping mats and blankets, and hiding any evidence that they were even there in case they were being tracked. After close to an hour, Hawkins was pleased with their work and shouldered one of the larger packs containing their equipment.  
It was a process that they repeated each morning of the past couple of months. They'd trekked through the forest finding no sign of the Princen. They'd move on a few miles into the forest that had almost spread across Naveer completely, find a place to stay, and pack up in the morning. They'd covered a lot of ground, but there was no evidence that Princen Kirran was ever there, which meant they were not allowed to leave.

It was another day of hopelessly following Hawkins and Robin, hoping that they had an idea of where they were heading. Everything looked the same to Cooper. There were trees, snow, and more trees. Thick, towering ironwoods that resembled pine trees with leaves that hung like bronze blades.  
She feared that today would be more of the same until she barrelled into Aiden, sending them both flying into the frozen earth.  
"What the hell?" grumbled Cooper, her armour and weaponry clinking angrily as she tore her body off the ground, jumping swiftly to her feet with more rattling, and reaching out a hand to help up her friend.  
Aiden shook her head, ignoring Cooper, holding up a hand to halt the others. "Hey - do you hear that?"  
Cooper frowned, looking around at the rest of the group who looked equally confused. "No? Can we continue?"  
"No, Cooper, that's the point"Aiden's words came out in a harsh whisper, her long ears pressed low against her skull in aggravation. "there's nothing".

Hawkins scowled, unsheathing her greatsword from its place on her back, thick muscle rippling with the movement. The squadron following suit, Cooper hesitantly unsheathing her sword and readied her shield. The lack of the howling and chirping that one resonated within the woods was concerning, but her lack of awareness was even more so.  
The squad pressed on, undeterred but on high alert. The snow crunched beneath their feet, loud in the stillness of the forest. The air somehow felt colder, thicker, and carried a heavy metallic scent reminiscent of old coins. Cooper wrecked her brain for ideas on what it could be, but her Templar training hadn't prepared her for tracking and identifying. She could swing a sword, and as proven so far, not die.  
An ear-splitting howl cut through the air. Cooper hunched into a defensive position, shield raised and sword at the ready. She looked to Hawkins for her next move, but the woman had already taken off in the direction of the sound, leaving the squad behind. Another howl. It sounded like closer to a scream. Pained, hoarse. Must have been a lumberjack from Dorren Fortress who had wandered out too far. There was no other reason for anyone to be in the forest, not since the folk tales claim the land to be haunted. Not that it was. Ghosts and the undead didn't exist.

She raced behind Hawkins the best she could, the others trailing behind her until she lost them to the white and bronze landscape. The forest was alive with the sounds of metal scraping metal, the thudding of footsteps. Omera, why did the forest have to look the same wherever they went? The closer they got to what Hawkins seemed to think was the source of the screaming, the more it seemed to surround them, echoing and pulsating through the trees. The sound got louder, enveloping them and becoming more and more inhuman. A reddish blur flashed through the trees, only a glimpse and it was gone.  
"There!" bellowed their Captain, slowing her speed with her breath coming out in short huffs.  
Cooper skidded to a stop, frantically looking around. She swallowed hard in an attempt to steady her breathing, "what the hell was _that_?"  
Hawkins hadn't heard, or maybe she didn't care, as she took off again as fast as she could. Cooper heaved a deep sigh before taking off after the slightly older woman, her voice becoming more and more hoarse as she yelled at her Captain to slow down.  
"Hawkins!" she yelled, voice rough and breaking, gathering herself to make her voice steady and commanding, " _Mycah_ , please. Stop."

Hawkins finally paused in the middle of a clearing, identical to the forest around and forcefully taking off her helmet. Her eyes darted wildly as she looked around at the absence of her squadron. Her heterochromatic eyes locked on Cooper, silently demanding an explanation.  
"Something's not right here" Cooper choked out, her voice rough, thick and muffled by her thick metal helmet.  
Hawkins tossed her helmet to the ground, huffing, and at that moment Cooper remembered that Hawkins wasn't the experienced leader that she was made out to be. That her Captain had been thrown into a position that she was barely used to, let alone ready for much like she had before her.  
"Listen, Cooper, if you're going to tell me that the stories are true you can leave." the Captain spat, face tense and veins bulging in her forehead, "Try explaining that to the Temple, I'm sure they'd be happy".  
"I don't know." Cooper swallowed, the air freezing her lungs as she gasped for breath, "I don't know what's happening, but please listen"  
Hawkins scowled and opened her mouth to reply, but all that came out was a barely contained gasp. Her voice dropped to a whisper as her eyes locked on something behind her. "Don't. Look. Behind you."

Behind her, branches snapped. Organic clicking noises, similar to a crab ruptured the air along with low hissing of air escaping a valve. The smell of metal was overwhelming now, nauseating. Cooper wanted to gag, but the look on Hawkins's face told her to hold back. Hawkins's finger touched her lips in a shushing gesture.  
' _Don't. Move_ ' the Captain mouthed, slowly raising her flat palm in a halting gesture, her eyes following whatever the hell was behind her. Cooper wanted to nod but didn't trust her helmet to not scrape against the rest of her armour. Hawkins slowly knelt, wincing as her armour squeaked softly against her, and picking up a frosty rock in her metal-clad palm. With some effort to keep quiet, she reared her arm back, ready to throw-

A yell, closer this time. A woman, and full of aggression. Aiden. It must have been. Whatever that was behind Cooper took off, scrambling through the trees and ripping off branches as it went. Cooper let out a breath she didn't notice she was holding. Hawkins shook her head as if that would take what she saw out of her mind, dropping the rock to the ground.  
The colour had drained from her now dripping face, sweat running in thick droplets and landing on her breastplate. Her eyes unfocused, she blinked forcefully, shaking her head as if to remove the memory of whatever it is she had seen. Cooper took a few tentative steps towards her Captain, putting a hand lightly on her shoulder in hopes of reassurance. Hawkins gave a quick nod, a small smile tugging at her lips as she exhaled.  
"Alright," the older woman panted, her body quivering with exertion and the cold, "we need to go, buckle up Cap- _Cooper_ "  
Together the two ran back towards the squadron. Heavy metal feet pounded and slid, their armour and equipment rattling against their bodies as they tried to keep up with the mysterious beast. The sounds of fighting got louder, but the squadron was still nowhere in sight. Cooper panted under her helmet, face hot. She would have pulled it off if she had known what she was up against, but the uncertainty was enough to keep her common sense in check.  
The shrieking continued, echoing louder and louder, slicing through Cooper's ears and filling her throat with anxious bile. She couldn't afford to overthink, but her mind kept being pulled back to the thought that she was already too late.

She barely got a glimpse of the squadron before she was tossed through the air like a child's doll. She crashed into a deep pile of snow, immediately feeling the temperature drop. Her mouth tasted like iron as she spat blood. She must have cut her lip in the fall, she got lucky - she couldn't afford a serious injury. Not now.  
Groaning, she pulled herself into a seated position. Her muscles screamed at her, and she could feel a slick wetness on her skin that she couldn't tell if it was sweat or blood. She felt around her neck, relieved to find the necklace that Jordan had proposed with. It hadn't left her throat since she put it on for the first time. The ring pendant slapped against her chest under her armour.  
Her vision blurred as she shakily stood, and her helmet was discarded in the snowbank, too dented for reuse. Her body protested as she felt around for her sword. Pain shot up her joints as she finally wrapped her hand around the hilt, pulling herself into a defensive stance with her sword held diagonally. She felt too weak to hold it, but giving up was a far worse fate.

It was silent again, a sound that was deafening to her now. No fighting, no movement, not even the birds that inhabited the forest. Silence meant trouble. It meant that whatever was hunting them was close. Her breath came out in short, painful gasps, rattling around in her ribcage. Stumbling forward, her armour creaking as she tried to keep herself upright. Whatever that thing was, it did more damage than it should have in that one strike. She was a Templar for crying out loud. She was meant to withstand being knocked around, her training should have made sure of that.  
"Cooper," came a sharp whisper up a nearby tree. A scruffy redhead with large, catlike emerald eyes. Aiden. Aiden fucking Fowler. Cooper had never been so happy to see her. She couldn't help the dopey grin that came to her face. Aiden was alive, and by the looks of it, mostly unharmed. " _Dumbass_ , c' mere. _Quietly_ "  
Cooper nodded, making her way slowly over. Her friend's thick Navi accent was a welcome sound in the silence. The pain in her muscles was almost nauseating. She winced, both at the pain and the noise her armour was making. She was almost tempted to take it off, but then again, she'd likely freeze without the insulation and be killed quicker in a fight.  
Aiden looked around at her surroundings before hopping down from her perch as gently as she could. She smiled, despite the situation. "You kinda look like shit"  
"Like you're any better" retorted Cooper, her throat burning. "Where's Captain Hawkins? Robin?"  
"Not sure about Hawkins, and Robin-" Aiden winced, voice quaking, "-he's...he's dead, Al"

A silence hung between the two women, Copper letting her friend grieve for a few short minutes before they're caught up with. Cooper shook her head as if that would make Aiden's words any less true or painful for the elven woman. "We need to find Hawkins. And Ned."

Aiden nodded, wiping her eyes and drawing her bow once more.

It was hard to track down a creature that seemingly only showed itself when it wanted to, and Cooper almost cursed herself for wishing she could be in the mists of a fight. Tracking was never her strong suit, and neither was waiting. She hated that she wanted to hear the painful shrieking that the creature seems to emit; if only to just make the process that bit easier. The best she could do was follow Aiden's lead in retracing her steps.  
Cooper felt her stomach clench at the site. A clear crimson path had been painted for them, it was almost beautiful, if not for the truth behind its cause. They followed the pathway that was carved out for them, the silence swathing them. Still, the only sounds that could be heard came from the travelling companions themselves through armour and pained breathing. She could feel her legs shake under her, protesting with every movement. Her sword was clenched in her hand, held up the best she could.  
Another flash of colour shot through the trees. Metal clanging, this time not from the duo, grew louder. Angry yells and grunts came from beyond the ridge, close to the old campsite. Shrieking, loud and piercing scraped through the air. It was closer now than ever before.  
Hawkins stood, greatsword at the ready, her face caked in dirt and perspiration. She let out an angry growl from deep within her chest, slashing at the air as a threat to those who come near.

And there it was. The creature that had stalked them for who knows how long. Thick muscle intertwined it's exposed bones of its top half, pulsating, red and hungry. Its jaw snapped open and shut as if measuring the size of the people before it. It's body wet and glistening, dripping with Gods know what. It looked as if it were fused from the bones of different creatures, held together with raw muscle. It clicked as it moved, a horrible sound of cracking bones, dry and macabre. It tilted its skull-like head to one side, regarding the newcomers. Cooper shuddered at the sight of it's many, long razor teeth.  
Hawkins charged. She swung her sword down hard on what appeared to be its arm or leg - in truth, there were so many limb-like appendages protruding from its side that Cooper wasn't sure what to call it. The creature was unaffected, staring down at her with the big, empty void of its eyes. It slowly reared back, priming itself to strike. Cooper couldn't watch, lunging forward to close the distance between her and Hawkins.  
The creature shrieked, bringing down its clawed hand, batting away the two Templars. They stumbled back, bouncing off each other. Dazed, Cooper staggered to the side, sword almost falling out of her hand. The creature rounded in on her, it's soulless gaze locked on her. It's upper half reared up, leaving it balanced on what seemed to be its tail. Its jaw widened, splitting from the centre outwards with a snap. _What the hell was this thing?_ was the only thought Cooper had before it lunged at her again lightning-quick, effectively pinning her to the frostbitten ground. Aiden shot her arrows, and Hawkins slashed and stabbed in an attempt to wound it to no avail. Its skeletal humanoid face now inches from Cooper's, it's hot breath carrying the scent of death and rot that filled her nostrils.

The world was silent again, but for the ringing in her ears. Her body screamed as she struggled under the weight of the unstoppable monster. It's upper body crushed her breastplate under its weight, causing her to gasp and choke as it broke her ribs one by one. Its claws dug into her sides, causing her veins to catch fire and shrivel in her flesh. Her body burned from the inside, eyes watering as she fought to breathe. She could almost feel her body swelling. The world was dimming slowly, the pain racing through her nerves was all she could focus on.  
" _Omera_ , forgive me" she choked out, voice creaking like the creature above her who seemed content in watching her burn. What would she leave behind? Her few friends would move on eventually. The Temple would have her replaced, surely. The children would miss her, but it was their duty to forget her after she passed.  
She prayed her false God would spare her, or to make her death quick. Her Goddess, Mother of Darkness and the Protector of the dead. After everything Cooper had given up her prayers should be heard, after the most of her life following Her, they must be heard, if her Goddess she was raised to follow was real, she _had_ to listen after everything Cooper had sacrificed.  
She wanted to scream, but the sound got caught in her throat, caught in a wet gurgle. Breathing in the cold, putrid air was harder, the heat in her skin was impossible to avoid. The world was black and hot, and heavy.

She lay dying under the canopy of needle-like leaves, the sounds of her squadron fighting and dying around her. Blood-mixed tears streamed down her face as the realisation hit her. She would never return home. Maybe, if the afterlife was real, she would be with her family again, her true family. Her mother, grandparents, and the children she had been tasked with raising that she had failed.  
She had one last failure to give. Her death would ultimately mean nothing. She struggled for breath as her lungs had failed her, refusing to take in air that she sorely needed. Her eyelids felt heavy, fluttering shut. Maybe she would finally find peace in whatever comes next.

If she could only see Jordan one last time-


	3. 2

Cooper's world was dark and damp, strangely cold.  
She woke up with a mouthful of dirt that she couldn't spit nor swallow, her face covered with the substance. The bodies of worms and who knows what else wriggled and writhed, tickling at her skin, dancing in open orifices and eating away at her flesh. She couldn't move, but whether that was due to her limbs no longer responding or the mass of earth on top of her, she wasn't sure. She racked her brain for answers. The last she could remember was that she was in the Ironwood Forest, searching for Queen Fraxinus' lost Princen and -

She had died. Probably. Possibly? She couldn't tell. She vaguely remembered the skeletal being that attacked her. Passed out, that's the better solution. Passing out was the only option that made sense, the undead didn't exist after all. The fairytales were just that, folklore. Since that was the case, Cooper wasn't sure what she had been doing deep within the icy ground.  
The sky opened up, or rather, the dirt was wiped off her face. _Finally_. It must have been Aiden's idea of a joke. Her eyes were merely cracks, being unable to open them properly. She could hear two people talking before her, but she couldn't make out where they were, just that it was clearly a man and a woman. One of them tapped at Cooper's breastplate with their knuckles.  
"You see this, Lockwood?-" came the voice of the woman, presumably the one who was assessing her attire. Cooper couldn't place her accent, not truly, but she sounded like she was from the frosty peaks of Bannaheimr, south of Mabristan. "-Proper sabrian armour. This poor sod's a can"  
Cooper didn't appreciate the insult. _Can_. It's what the locals called the Templars, many of which were tasked with patrolling the city in their armour to keep the civilians in line when the guards and law enforcement couldn't.  
"A little far from home, don't you think?" the man - Lockwood - asked, his voice light and youthful.  
The woman stood up, rubbing at her chin in thought, "We should take the armour - that shit's rare outside of Isos"

Her greaves were off in seconds.

Cooper wanted to yell at them, to tell them that she's alive, but her body refused to respond. Her spine stiff, her limbs stuck solid against her sides. Her mouth was still full of dirt and she couldn't bring her mouth to spit it out. What the hell was happening? Her tattered breastplate and the cloth that shows her Temple's sigil were next to be removed. The man gagged at the putrid smell that came from her wounds, but he prevailed nonetheless.  
"This...this is messed up" he sighed, "wonder what happened to them."  
"From the looks of it, "the woman started, stopping only to crouch back down and survey the damage properly, "Cryptling, definitely. See how the veins are swelling? Nasty things, not sure what one would be doing this far out west."

She looked directly at Cooper, her face hovering above hers. Dark skin that was clear of scaring - a foreign concept to Cooper, large amber eyes that were only just visible under her mop of lavender hair. She wore a tricorn that sat between two large, curling rams horns. She looked quite young, but it was hard to tell with fauns. The woman smiled and gently stroked Cooper's cheek, her hands warm and dry against her icy, clammy skin. "What are you doing out here on your own, love? In a hole, no less."  
Cooper breathed out heavily through her nose. It felt as if she had been holding that breath forever. She could hear the man curse under his breath, scrambling away. The woman only chuckled, removing her hand from Cooper's face.  
"Can you get up?" she asked softly, Cooper wanted to at least try but her muscles still refused to respond, leaving her as limp as a ragdoll. Chloe took her stiff silence as the only answer she needed.  
The woman gently picked her up, carrying Cooper against her chest as if she weighed nothing, careful of the wounds that littered the Templar's body.  
"You can't be serious - we can't take her with us," he said stubbornly, still staying out of eyesight.  
"I'm the Captain, I'm in charge here. I say we take her. Now bundle up the armour and let's go".

Another captain. Oh, joy. Cooper would have preferred to be left on the ground than taking orders from a new leader. The woman didn't seem like a Templar, at least. Unless Templars suddenly looked different under the other Gods.  
Cooper swayed as she was carried. It wasn't the most comfortable experience, what with the women's heavy coat buttons digging into her side, and the bobbing of movement as she walked. The feeling started to come back properly to her fingers and hands, pins and needles spreading under her skin along her nerves.  
"Why are you doing this? We owe her nothing. So what if she was left for dead, it was probably for good reason."  
"Ernest, we might be pirates but that doesn't mean we leave our morals."  
_Pirates_. The day was getting better and better. Not only had she awoken in a grave she assumed her squadron must have put her in, but she was getting captured by pirates. Pirates! What did she do in her past life to deserve this? She couldn't fight back even if she wanted to, her limbs numb, and Chloe seemed nice enough but Cooper didn't trust their intentions. They had just stolen her armour and Gods know what else.

She woke up on a wooden table in a dark room. Had she fallen asleep, or was she back at the Inn at the fortress, after having dreamt of her experiences? She tried to sit up and groaned as her stomach screamed in pain, slumping back down onto the table. Definitely not a dream, then.  
She could move now, at least. She curled her fingers one by one and straightened them with care. She was still sore and her right side was ablaze with pain but ultimately, she was alive. Perhaps Omera _had_ saved her. She banished the thought from her mind as quickly as it came. Her moment of weakness had come because she thought she was dying, nothing more. She would never willingly bend the knee to the Mabrisian Gods.

She looked around, bleary-eyed. Something was off, her eyes weren't focusing on the dimly lit room. More specifically, _one_ eye wasn't adjusting. Wasn't working at all in fact. She awkwardly rubbed at her face, her motor functions not yet caught up with her brain quite yet. She sucked in a sharp breath before looking around again, frowning at the lack of function in her right eye. _'It must not have caught up with the rest of her'_ , thought Cooper in unbelieving hope.  
She tried sitting again, ignoring her body's reluctance. The room was mostly silent, giving away no indication of where she could be. There was humming in the room above, and idle chatter not too far away from the room she was in, but either of those could mean a tavern. There didn't seem to be movement, no swaying or lurching, so it couldn't have been a ship, she deducted.

The door swung open, crashing into the wall and bouncing back, the sound jolting down Cooper's spine. Her gaze snapped to the sound, where a grinning Chloe Turner sauntered in, looking pleased.  
"So, you're finally awake, Cooper!" she noted as she crossed the room, taking a seat next to Cooper at the bottom of the table. "You've been out for days, you got pretty banged up out there, huh?"  
Cooper raised an eyebrow, looking bewildered. Days? That couldn't be, she had just passed out in the forest. And how had this pirate known who she was?  
Chloe ignored the questioning look, tilting forward to rest her elbows on her knees, "well then Teddy, I didn't think I'd see you so far out of Syi Dorei! What brought you to Naveer in the first place?"  
Teddy? Cooper frowned. There was only one Teddy Cooper she could think of, and that was the twin she was separated from for years. A small part of her was glad that her sister had lived, another larger part was concerned at her business with the criminals of the ocean.  
"I...I'm not Teddy" came the young Templar's reply without hesitation. She felt her face heat up at Chloe's curious expression. "I'm Alexxyn, not Theodora. Teddy's my twin."  
"Hey, hey, relax kid," Chloe laughed melodically, "Teddy never told me she had a sister. It's nice to meet you, Alexxyn."  
"It's...It's Cooper if you don't mind" she chose to ignore the rest of that sentence, for her own peace of mind. Her instinct from watching others interact at the academy was to flirt or joke back, however, she was skilled in neither, and keeping her mouth shut became the best option. "You know my sister?"  
"Enough," Chloe hummed thoughtfully before clearing her throat, her back going rigid. Far less relaxed than she had been a minute ago. "Well, Cooper, now that you're awake, I came in to check up on you. See how you're adjusting. You've probably noticed some differences, physical and mental after your, ah... _ordeal_."  
"I seem to be blind, or mostly blind in one eye," remarked Cooper, Chloe only nodded as if waiting for her to proceed. Cooper did not.  
"Notice anything...else?"  
"I'm sore, side hurts like hell. Nothing I can't deal with"

A pang of sadness flashed across Chloe's face before it steeled again. "You went through a lot, Cryptlings are no joke. Their venom has strange effects on the body, most don't survive, it fries the nerves, deteriorates the muscles, and can lead to paralysis. Those who do survive...they aren't the same anymore. Not...people." Cooper wanted to question her, but the Captain kept going. "Cryptlings tend to stay in East Akeldama, no idea what the hell they're doing in Naveer."  
Cooper nodded along, watching Chloe with a serious expression.  
"See, the thing here is, the venom is pretty bad all over your right side. That scarring definitely isn't going away any time soon. Our ship doctor says it got up in your head, which knocked you out while your body tried to heal itself - we don't know the extent of the damage, might be nothing, might be major. It also severed the nerves in your leg. We tried fitting you up with a peg, the same treatment my crew get. Don't know how well it's going to work out, you need to properly test it to figure that out. Tried our best though"  
_A peg?_ Cooper was confused, shooting a look towards her legs. _Ah, a peg_. From her knee down, her leg was replaced with polished dark wood, thick and not at all reminiscent of a human leg. The bottom curved into what seemed to be a replacement for a foot and didn't seem that sturdy, but if it worked for the others she'd have to make it work for herself.  
"Oh. That's...huh."  
"You're taking this remarkably well" stated Chloe, "are you doing okay?"  
Cooper took her time to respond, wanting to truly think over her words. She had presumably woken up in her own grave, gotten taken in by pirates, that her sister was both alive and _friendly_ with pirates, learned that she's now physically disabled and the likelihood of being accepted back into the Temple was getting smaller by each new revelation. The last one didn't seem so bad. Perhaps if she could lay low, she could marry Jordan for real.  
"I'm...still processing waking up in a hole, I'll be honest," she said with a small smile, the revelation that she could finally be _truly_ with her lover tugging at her lips.  
Chloe nodded with a soft smile. "You're a tough one just like your sister, I'll give you that. Now come on, let's test that leg out"  
Cooper nodded, and with help from Chloe, she managed to swing her legs over the side of the table and gently put her feet on the ground. She leaned heavily on Chloe, favouring her left side and she got used to the emptiness from her knee down. She tapped at the ground a few times with her wooden replacement, feeling the soft tapping ricocheting up her leg to her hip.  
The wooden leg was heavier than she could have expected and uncomfortable. She didn't trust it enough yet to place her full weight. It wasn't painful, per se, but strange. It was like one side was trying to balance on a tightrope, paired with her inability to see through her right eye she was terrified to fall. She kept her consistent death grip on Chloe, who if she was pained in any way she didn't complain. She should buy her a drink after this, she thought. If she found money, at least. She carried none, as any funding was given to Captain Hawkins, and only to Captain Hawkins.

Several hours passed, with the two taking a few breaks in between as to not wear themselves out. Cooper sat on a chair, drenched with sweat and legs shaking from exhaustion. Chloe busied herself in front of a mirror, putting her hair back in place. Cooper wouldn't have gone through that process again, but she was thankful that she now could at least walk small distances unaided.  
"Do I get an eyepatch too?"Cooper tiredly attempted at a joke, panting in her chair.  
"You already had to get a glass replacement, kid, don't push your luck"  
Cooper's mood soured as she came to a realization, "I'm sorry, what?"  
"I thought I told you, I apologize. There were a lot of injuries, I must have overlooked it"  
Cooper nodded slowly. She felt as if she couldn't feel surprised anymore. She just wanted to go home.  
"I should probably get back to the Academy"  
Chloe looked over at her, eyebrows knitted in what might have been concern or confusion, "The Academy? You mean Stykes? We're in Adanak, love."

Silence passed between them as the Captain's words hung in the air, the tension building like a thunderstorm between them. The two women stared each other down, Chloe with her eyes full of concern as if watching a lamb being taken to the slaughter, and Cooper who filled with anger and annoyance as the seconds ticked on. Cooper broke the silence first, her voice a caged tempest.  
" _Adanak_? You brought me to _Shales_?"  
"I wasn't going to be late to my businesses for you, no offence, but pirating around these parts isn't always easy."  
"The hell am I supposed to do here? I have nothing here!"  
"You're a free woman now" retorted Chloe, "you're free from being some military can."  
Cooper snorted and shook her head, "I have people to go back to, who rely on me."  
"Then decide what you do from here, go find a merchant or stick around a few months 'til we leave again"  
Cooper seethed quietly, her steam and adrenaline slowly giving way. She let out a tired sigh. She stood up straight, relaxing as she tried to convince herself that she could take control of this situation.  
"What happened to my armour? My sword and shield?"  
"Sold. I'll be honest, we needed the profit."  
Cooper's hand flew to her throat at the revelation, pleased to find that her ring still hung warm around her neck.  
"And you helped me, because-?" prompted Cooper, growing weary with her anger fizzling out like a snuffed candle.  
"Initially I thought you were Teddy, she's a friend after all" sighed the Captain, "But you're young and you had your entire life ahead of you."  
Cooper deflated, hating herself for letting herself go this far, get that angry. She stood up slowly on shaky legs, awkwardly balancing herself out with her arms raised like a tightrope walker's balancing pole. She slowly made her way over to the door, pausing before opening it.  
"Thank you. For your hospitality," she said softly, opening the door and edging her way through.  
"Cooper, wait," Chloe called after her, causing Cooper to look over her shoulder at the woman, "be careful, and good luck. Don't want you dying after all we did to get you back on your feet. I hope we meet again, in better circumstances."  
Cooper let a small, sad smile flicker to her face, and nodded before finally exiting the room and onto the Tavern's main landing. Clean wooden floors and off-white walls greeted her, slightly decorated with framed paintings and potted plants. Cooper hobbled her way along the corridor, making her way to the stairs. She braced herself, sighing heavily before hesitantly putting on foot on the lower step and edging her way down. The wooden stairs creaked under her weight, groaning in frustration. Cooper made her way down slowly, into the loud room below, tugging at her collar with anxious energy.

The large main room was packed with people. Many drinking in their groups, laughing and joking with each other, some sat alone watching the goings-on. Barmaids were weaving in and around the drunken crowd collecting glasses or pouring more ale. Cooper felt out of place in her mud-stained navy trousers and gambeson. She hobbled shakily towards the bar, where an older dwarven man with a long, braided, white beard stood, polishing glasses. He looked up at her, putting down the glass.  
"Well, don't you look like shit?"he grinned, leaning on the bar top and eyeing her with curious brown eyes. "What can I get you?"  
"Information, if possible," said Cooper meekly, feeling completely out of her element. Sure, she had been in a tavern before, she'd even ordered her fair share of alcohol, but to ask for help in a now foreign land was a new experience. In the Academy, she'd rely on fake confidence and cocky half-smiles, then in her Squad, she'd let Hawkins handle everything. "Or a job? I'm not quite sure how to get back to Mabristan from here."  
"Mabrisian, eh? Don't get many of those around here. You come here on a bender?"  
"With pirates," Cooper nodded, beginning to feel more at ease. "They sold off my things, and left me with no way back"  
"Aye, that was your first mistake, trusting pirates. Now, I have no work for you personally, I'm at capacity with my employees."  
"I see. Thank you, anyway."  
Cooper moved to walk away, but the old man grabbed her arm to stop her. "Now hold on a second, I could still help, if you're fine with mercenary work."  
She moved back, sitting on a barstool and leaning in, her face a deadly serious mask, "I'm listening"  
"Head out to the town hall, there's a board out there with a bunch of stuff. Mercenary work, guard hires, hell, even gardening if you're into that but you don't seem the type. What you need to do is find something you're into, go to whatever address they give, and throw in a claim. Now granted, there are probably a few others already doing the thing you pick, but you just gotta do it faster."  
"That...seems a bit backward, I'll be honest"  
"Hey, I don't make the rules" he shrugged, before leaving her alone so that he could deal with a customer.  
Cooper sighed. Didn't seem that she had a choice. With no money, no supplies, and no weapons, she had nothing but her clothing to her name. She had no way to contact her Temple, either. Not that they'd want a disgraced Templar to return to them, they would rather have her head.

Her stomach growled, sending flares of weakness through her body. She wasn't sure when the last time she ate was. She hadn't eaten for a while in the forest, the troupe had skipped a proper breakfast to cover more ground, and she had skipped a meal the night before to get to bed early ready to be rested for her shift. A decision that she now regretted. She felt light-headed, but not enough to hinder her movement just yet. Was it too late to turn back and ask Chloe for help? Yes. Yes, it definitely was.  
A young woman with bright blue hair, a seemingly new fad across Shales, with matching blue glasses and shirt smiled at her and came to sit in the barstool next to her.  
"Hey you, can I buy you a drink?" she asked eyeing her with a hungry gaze.  
Cooper stared back warily, "sorry, taken."  
"That's fine. You just look a bit lost, maybe you could use a friend?"  
"Name's Cooper."  
"Syi Dorian, right?" the blue-haired woman grinned, she reminded Cooper of Jordan's dorm mate Sammy back home, and that didn't incite trust, "I'm Scout, I'm from there myself. Kingshill."  
"I left there a few months back, Stykes Academy."  
"No way! I help down at the Switchboard a bit whenever I'm in town."  
"You know Lainey?" asked Cooper in disbelief, please to find a kindred spirit in amongst the mess she found herself in.  
  
The two went back and forth for what seemed like hours, exchanging stories and jokes about working at the Switchboard, while Cooper was never an employee she had plenty of stories of helping out Lainey to set the nightclub up, and lamenting their homesickness for Kingshill. For Cooper, it was for the people more than the place itself. She couldn't care less about the city, it wasn't hers. Scout had bought them a few rounds of non-alcoholic drinks that Cooper couldn't put the name to. None of which could extinguish the feeling that passed as hunger growing within her. Cooper passed it off as getting sick out in Naveer, it made sense after waking up in a hole.  
"Wanna see somewhere cool?" asked her new acquaintance, getting up off her barstool. Cooper clutched at her stomach, which Scout didn't seem to notice, and nodded curiously.  
Cooper hopped off of her barstool, following the blue-haired woman into a back room.


	4. 3

Blood dripped languidly from her mouth, hunger sated and her energy fully returned. She stared at herself in a mirror, her white undershirt stained red and her gambeson was neglected. Her breathing was heavy, fogging up the glass before her as she stared herself in the eyes.  
She was a _monster_.  
Her teeth were stained, her pupils dilated. She hadn't seen herself since she woke up in the room upstairs. Her once dark olive complexion was ashen, her right side a white spider's web of scars, a stark contrast to the rest of her skin. Her right eye – her _blind_ eye - was a milky blue, dull and lifeless. _What the hell had she become?_  
She let her eyes wander across the reflection, to the dead body that lay haphazardly on the ground in a dark, rapidly growing puddle. Cooper had lost control over a feeling she didn't know she had. Her throat burned. Her jaw clicked as she opened and closed her mouth as if it was returning into its hinges.  
" _Omera_ , what happened here?'' whispered Cooper, her mind foggy and her memories of the past few minutes blurring together. She had _killed_ someone. She killed an unarmed woman, without hesitation. She _drank_ her _blood_ like some kind of deranged animal. Calling the Goddess made no difference, Mother Death wanted nothing to do with her. The fact didn't stop Cooper from saying a small prayer towards Omera, for the woman she killed. She didn't even know her name, she hadn't gotten that far before she launched at the poor woman.

The door handle jiggled. Someone was going to come in, see her like this. See the _body_. Cooper looked wildly around the room for an exit. There was a window, no other door or exits. In haste, she ran, desperately trying to open her only exit. The window was jammed, completely unmoving. She growled, a deep desperate noise in her throat, as she grabbed a dining chair and tossed it at the glass. The sound of smashing reverberated through the small room. The chair bounced and splintered on the ground below.  
The door swung open and Cooper launched herself out the window. She hit the ground with a grunt, the air unceremoniously pushed from her lungs.  
" _Creator_ \- hey you! Stop right there!" yelled a man's voice, booming through the now mostly abandoned room.  
Cooper pushed herself off the ground and broke into a run, ignoring the pain in her chest and the wobble in her strides. She pushed herself harder, slipping and collapsing yet again. The air forcefully being rejected from her lungs yet again. Is this what her life has become? Constant running? Death following? A weak sound of pain escaped her lips as she pushed herself back onto her knees, slowly getting back on her feet, swaying. She steadied herself before looking around.

The town was too quiet for her liking. Especially after her outburst in the tavern. The light was dim and muted by light smoke that came from nearby factories, the air carrying a heavy chill that she hadn't felt in years. Couples both new and old sat around the park, watching their children, or their children's children playing amongst themselves, chattering excitedly, and creating small structures out of the thin layer of snow on the ground. More ice than snow, really, but Cooper didn't have the heart to spoil their fun. She felt a pang of jealousy which she had quickly buried. She didn't have the luxury to unpack those feelings just then.  
It was Adanak, all right. That feeling tugged at her heart. She wasn't sure where exactly, but judging from the mountains she was only a stone's throw away from Southden, the village where she was born. The deep purple of the Ravenflight mountains loomed in the distance, snow-capped and reaching past the clouds. As a child she'd always wanted to climb to the top, to be the first to do so, but as she grew older the dream faded as she took on her duties as a Templar. Now that she was dead to the Temple, nothing was stopping her from climbing those mountains. She was well and truly free. Free to do whatever she wanted.

At that very second, Cooper wanted a change of clothes and a warm drink. Some money would be nice too.

Cold wetness seeped into her boot from where she stood in the ankle-length, frost-covered grass, causing her to wince in both disgust and discomfort. _Definitely_ time to change. She rubbed at her arms in an attempt to warm herself now that her heart had settled. Her breath came out in unsteady puffs of vapour in the air, much like a broken chimney. Heaving a long, deep breath and shuddering from the cold air, she set off once more in the direction of Southden.

The village of Southden stood a few miles outside of the town she had awoken in. The buildings were taller than she remembered, sturdier with more brick than wood. Cooper could barely call it a village either, as it resembled closer to the city she was raised in. The houses were decorated with little lights that would put Lainey to shame coloured the paths in the dimming light. It hadn't been this vibrant when she was taken kicking and screaming from her family home at the age of eight, by some officer of the law only to be sold like livestock. She remembered it to be dull, brown, and broken. The taverns she used to sneak into with her sister, Teddy, were now replaced with tall, elegant hotels and fancy, neon bars. The ground was freshly paved cobblestone, not the mud paths that kicked up dust when ran across.  
Cooper had wandered to where she remembered living, a small wooden hut that used to sit in the centre of the village, to where it now what seemed to be a corner shop that sold an assortment of items. Emotions built up, and her eyes stung. She clenched her jaw. It wasn't her home anymore, hadn't been for almost two decades, but it hurt none the less.

She remembered coming home from the church that doubled as a school late one day, Teddy had taken her on a so-called adventure through the area they nicknamed The Swamp. The Swamp itself was really a lake that the locals had taken to throwing their rubbish into and polluting it, but to the two children, it was most definitely a swamp. They had spent the afternoon playing and exploring, coming home far later than they should, covered head to toe in mud and grass from play fighting. Their mother had been fuming, hosing the two in their tiny garden at the back of the house. They were memories she'd keep forever, even when the house no longer existed, her sister separated from her and her mother no longer alive to make new memories with.

Heaving a sigh and shaking off the memories that clouded her mind, Cooper backed away from the shop as the owner shot filthy looks her way. She needed a place to stay for the night, and evidently, she couldn't go home unless she planned on buying a tent from where it once stood. Or stealing it, since she lacked money.  
Hoping for the best, she sought out another tavern, one where she'd hopefully not make the same bloody mistake as in the last town. If she had any luck, she wouldn't be known as a fugitive just yet.  
Luck seemed to be finally in her favour. The building she came across may not have been a tavern, at least not in the way she was used to. It reminded her more of the Switchboard back home in Kingshill but by far more polished and in a nicer area. It might have been a restaurant, however, Cooper had never formally entered one so it was anyone's guess.  
The inside of the bar was quiet, except for a handful of patrons who hung around the bartop or playing a certain tabletop game involving balls and sticks. She entered cautiously, slinking her way further in, hoping to go unnoticed as she headed towards the bathrooms in the back to clean up a bit.  
"We don't take well to beggars here" came a low, slurring voice from a table she passed. She ignored the man, pressing on until the same man grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her back. "Are you deaf? You aren't welcome".  
"Hey, back off Samson," a tall, dark-skinned woman pushed protectively between her and the drunk - Samson - shoving him back. Samson looked like he was ready to fight, but quickly dismissed them both, turning back to his table. The woman turned to Cooper, her eyes gleaming a sharp silver before fading to a dark brown. "Wait a second - Cooper? The hell are you doing here?"  
"Rachel?" exclaimed Cooper, face scrunching in confusion and until she was dragged into a tight hug by the taller woman. She barked out a surprised laugh and hugged her back, holding on tight until they both released each other. "Gods - I'm glad to see a friendly face."  
"You and me both, buddy" Rachel grinned, "it's been too long. Come, sit, we have some catching up to do."

The two sat at a polished wooden table in the back of the bar, far away from anyone else. They exchanged stories of their journey, Rachel excitedly explaining how she lost her arm in a trap and showing Cooper the functions of her new prosthetic. Her arm now tapered off into a brass gauntlet-like hand, with small slits at the tip of each finger where she explained that knives were held in case she lost her sword in a fight. Rachel had made it herself, which Cooper had no doubts. Cooper watched her in awe as Rachel recounted her journey over to Adanak, letting her speak enthusiastically as Cooper's jaw almost hung open.  
Rachel had really grown up in the time they were apart, however long that was. Her once short-cropped brown hair now cascading down around her shoulders, with half pulled back behind her head in a tight knot. She held herself with confidence and was comfortable talking with ease. Being away from the Academy lifestyle had been good for her, she practically glowed. Cooper wished she could say the same for herself, but she only felt like a part of her was missing. Still, she felt happy for her friend and grinned as she went back and forth in telling stories. Cooper hadn't many tales to tell, but she dramatically recounted her time in the woods fighting cryptlings, and her brief time around pirates. As little as it was, Rachel hung on her every word, eagerly asking questions and letting her speak as long as she wanted.  
Rachel called down a waitress, speaking in a language that Cooper only understood a few from. Her Adanak tongue was far beyond rusty after years of disuse.  
"Have you been back to Mabristan at all?" asked Cooper as the waitress came back with two more tall drinks of clear, purple liquid.  
Rachel took a long sip before shaking her head, "no, not at all. It's been a long trip for me. I'm following my ancestor's footprints over Shales, it's going to be a while yet till I'm done. I get letters though, occasionally. Danny makes sure to send as many as she can, sweet kid, but not I'm not able to get every one of them thanks to the constant travel."  
Cooper nodded, sipping cautiously at her own drink. It was sweet and tasted vaguely of lavender and peach, a pleasant surprise. She took another sip.  
"And you, Coop?" asked Rachel.  
"No. I want to go back though. _Need_ to go back," the Templar leaned forward in her chair, resting her elbows on the table with her head in her hands. "I'm stuck here".  
"If...if it's money you need, you could probably join the group I'm in? Barnaby could use extra protection, and he pays well. I could put in a good word for you"  
"Gods, would you?"  
"Yeah, of course. Let me just talk to them first, and I'll be back." Rachel downed the rest of her drink and left a sack of coin on the table in front of Cooper. "Treat yourself, I might be a while".

The week had been mostly uneventful. Cooper had officially met her new employer - the historian Sir Barnaby Daniels. He was an older faun, with tight curly brown hair that had started greying at the sides, with two large stag horns protruding from either side of his head. He dressed in a horrid mix of finery - light greens, mixed with dark reds, blinding yellows, and soft blues. His monocle had cracks and a hole suggesting it was pierced at some point. Cooper almost dropped out of the trip, if it weren't for the money she was promised. She had also met one of the other guards on the trip, Finn, who hailed from the Hawthorne clan in the Ravenflight mountains. He was the opposite of Sir Barnaby, dangerously pale with a mop of wild red hair that he kept under a trapper hat, and swirling black tattoos that covered the left visible side of his body. He was tall and thin enough to look like he'd drown in his clothing. Rachel had made sure to warn Cooper to not mention the Temple or the Mabrisian Gods around them or the other Shalian inhabitants, not that Cooper planned to. The people of Shales were largely distrustful of the Gods, referring to them only as "parasites". The same viewpoint was wrestled out of Cooper as soon as she entered the Temple with varying results.  
Finn had given her a spare sword - nothing special, it was what she had used as a training sword while growing up. Iron, leather-wrapped hilt, and a squared-off pummel. She quickly proved she could use it as she sent the poor man to the ground each time they duelled.

Their duelling had become a spectator sport for the town's people. They had gained coins and tokens, Finn, in particular, proved quite popular after he shed his oversized, heavily patched clothes in favour of tighter fitting jumpers and layers of scarves. Cooper had been given a token, a necklace, from a woman, both the object and the woman herself shiny and golden and reminded her of Jordan. _Would bring a good price when she'd sell it off,_ she thought, deciding to do so once they've left town. Rachel had joined in a few times, easily besting Finn and Cooper herself. Both her companions had an advantage over her, since she hadn't gotten used to the feeling of her prosthetic leg in a combat situation yet, walking had been fine for the most part but running and dodging proved to be something she needed to work on. She prefered to stay back and place bets on the two and try to get used to more arduous uses of her new leg on her own.

The three mercenaries sat around a campfire one night as Sir Barnaby wandered the town one last time for information regarding their trip. Rachel and Cooper sat on a fallen log in front of a small campfire, as Finn set tins of meat into the flames with his bare hands without a reaction.  
Cooper's shoulders were tense as she hunched over, staring into the bright orange flames before her. She wasn't perfectly sure that she belonged amongst the crew, but she trusted Rachel enough to go with it. It was her ticket back to Mabristan, back to Syi Dorei were she had belonged for almost two decades. She had people to go back to, she had _Jordan_ to go back to. Not only that, but she had a duty to fulfil for her Temple, they had surely noticed her absence. The Temple children - her wards, of sorts - needed a person to guide them, especially when the second oldest was a priest and therefore not "suited" towards raising the Templars.  
Rachel patted her on the back the way she always had, firm and warm, the comradery shaking her to her core. She was family, had been for the past four years since they had met at the academy.

"What's got you thinking so hard, Coops? Can almost see the steam coming off those cogs" joked Rachel, pulling Cooper out of her thoughts. The taller woman grinned at Cooper before reaching out and grabbing a mitt to take one of the cans of questionable meat off of Finn.  
Cooper shook her head and quirking a small, off guard smile. "Finn's really just...digging his hands into the fire huh?"  
"I'm a Hawthorne, merc, not sure what you're expecting" huffed Finn, passing Cooper a mitt and a can of her own. They cracked open their cans and ate in silence, Cooper wincing as she slowly chewed the slimy meat, reluctantly swallowing and fighting pulling a face before digging for another chunk of the unidentifiable, greying meat.  
Cooper grimaced after eating yet another chunk, putting the can aside. "So," she started, stopping to hold back her gag reflex then clearing her throat, "what exactly is it that we're helping Sir Daniels with?"  
"A relic, once belonging to the Valcari family" responded Finn with a shrug, "not really sure the significance of it"  
"You're kidding, right?" scoffed Rachel, "The _Valcari_ family? The first royal family of Mabristan?"  
"Ah yeah, the colonialists, how could I forget?"  
"Never said I liked the bastards, just saying they're important to Mabrisian history. Hell, they're an important part of _my_ family history. Great-something aunt Alice spent her life tailing Artemis"  
"And now you're doing the same, wasting your life tracking down a dead murderer" Finn shook his head, "you Mabrisians are nuts."  
"Not Mabrisian" chimed in Cooper, "I was _born_ in this village. Rachel's from Akeldama."  
Finn ignored Cooper as he usually did outside of their duels, taking another bite from his meal. "Still can't say I see the point of this whole..." Finn trailed off, waving his fork from side to side as he thought of the right word to say, "worship of the family? Nothing but blue-blooded killers"  
Rachel sighed, "Aster Valcari came from a merchant family, until he led a charge against what we now know as Astria and claimed it, and went on to unite the four other countries in Mabristan. Or something? The history's pretty jumbled."  
"Guess it didn't hurt him to name the bloody place after himself. _Astria_. What a prick"  
Rachel and Cooper hummed in agreement. Not even the Mabrisian people themselves could pick a stance on the old royal family. They either hated them outright or had some level of respect with nothing in between.  
"So, your ancestor, what happened to her? She ever found Artemis?" asked Finn after a long silence.  
Rachel shook her head, "she died of old age before she could even see Artemis again. She was one of the lucky ones"  
"Creator that's sad, you couldn't have said a...I don't know, a happier story?"  
"And lie about the people we're probably going to grave rob? Not likely!"  
"Wait - I thought you said the family's Mabrisian, what the hell are we doing in Adanak?" asked Cooper.  
"They say Artemis fled with the Darkblade -the relic we're hunting, all the way to Shales." Finn poked at the fire with his bare hand again, making Cooper's heart jump into her throat much like each previous time he did so, "Barney reckons he knows where it is if it even still exists. Either way, he's paying well and that's all I really care about."  
"Barney?" Rachel questioned with a grin plastered on her face.  
Finn's usually paper-white face flushed a pale pink as he stammered his answer, "well, yeah, Barney. Been travelling with him a while, yeah? Longer than you lot".

The two women ribbed him until the day darkened into night, or at least Rachel did, with Cooper chipping in occasionally. The village of Southden was illuminated in soft pinks, blues, and greens, making the village look more like a small city in comparison to its neighbours. The trio slowly split between their three tents, with Cooper and Rachel sharing while Finn and Sir Daniels having their own. Finn claimed it was due to the fact that Cooper wasn't trusted yet, but she didn't know how serious he was. Either way, she was fine sharing, and Rachel hadn't complained too much.  
Cooper lay on her back, staring up at the beige canvas above while Rachel slept soundly beside her. Her eyelids were heavy, barely being able to keep them open, but the tangled pain in her stomach kept her from truly sleeping. With some hesitation as to not wake her friend, and to keep whatever progress she had made with sleep, she sat up to take a sip of water. The pain she felt could have only been blamed on the meat she had managed to eat, or so she thought. She wasn't completely sure, but she refused to think more on the subject until she had properly rested. With some difficulty, she managed to drift off into a restless slumber.


	5. 4

When the day to leave finally came, Cooper found herself in the back of a rickety old wagon, heading South-East to the city of Ridgewood. Finn sat up front, tending to the horses and guiding them in the right direction, while Rachel slept beside her, pressing herself into the corner of the wagon. Sir Barnaby sat opposite her, the round faun furiously scribbling in his journal to the point that Cooper was worried that his quill would start smoking. He muttered under his breath, too low for her to make out the words before his head suddenly snapped up, his horns threatening to tear a hole in the cloth that covered the back-end of the wagon.  
"I've got it!" he exclaimed, an excitable grin tugging at his lips.  
Cooper tiredly smiled and nodded, he'd been like this for the past two hours. _"Got what, Sir?"_ she'd ask, and the reply was always the same - either he had solved something in his book of numbers, or he had thought he'd figured out a minor historical event. The process would eventually start over, and one of the three guards would have to answer, then the faun would again become quiet then the cycle would continue. Possibly until one of the youngsters finally snapped and throttled the old man.

Ridgewood was a large city, shining brown with old brass and copper and the sky filled with a thick black cloud of smoke that swirled ominously overhead. It was several miles away from Southden, the village but a minuscule spec on the horizon. The Perrin river cut through the city glittering silver-blue and somehow untouched by the pollution of the industrial capital that was sandwiched around it, splitting the city into two sides. Despite the smoke in the air, the smells of fresh bread from the bakeries and the assortment of flowers in the florists could be smelled surprisingly strongly, artificial aromas being pumped out from the vents dotted around the city.  
Cooper was filled with the sudden need to _explore_ , she had never been in the capital, not even when she was still a citizen of Adanak. She, however, stuck close to Rachel like a bewildered puppy, worried at the thought of having to interact with the people who were now so strange to her, who spoke in a language she barely remembered. She could pick up the odd word spoken from the sea of people who divided around them, avoiding the crew like the plague, the only real acknowledgement of their existence. This didn't phase Sir Daniels in the slightest as he bounded down the winding streets with the trio of guards trailing behind as they failed to keep up with his frantic pace.  
The triad hurried their pace in order to catch up to the older faun as he ducked around a corner remarkably quickly, long curled hair bouncing with each stride. They still had no idea where he was rushing off to, and Rachel had grabbed Cooper's hand at some point along the way to keep her from falling behind thanks to her slight but persistent limp.

The faun led them down a narrow street, one that seemed far older than the rest of the city. While the city was openly soot-stained and in need of real cleaning, the street had been devoid of the dull metallic browns and machinery, instead charred and littered with papers. Cooper glanced around anxiously, her heart thudding against her ribcage and blood coursing through her veins. Shadows seemed to shift around them, but that must have been her imagination. The sun itself seemed to dim as they advanced down the street, despite it being mid-day and cloudless.  
Sir Barnaby finally came to a stop outside of a building that was far shorter than the others and sat slightly further back from the road. The squat building was a dark, dusty purple in colour, with small square windows with deep red outlines painted around them. The door was dark wood, with thick knots curling in each plank that was held together by a rusty pane of metal. Sir Barnaby rapped loudly with the circular iron knocker that hung in its centre. After a few minutes, a slot opened up above said knocker, and after another pause, it slammed shut with a creak and the door opened to leave the adventurers inside.  
Cooper had expected the inside to be very small, much like the outside, but instead, the walls were teeming with magic that expanded the floorplan to be slightly more habitable - although not overly noticeable. The walls were a lemon yellow, and low beams held the ceiling. The wooden floor was haphazardly covered with different animal pelts, matching the heads that were stuffed and hung on the walls.  
She finally noticed the person who had let them in after her curiosity has subsided. A round, dwarvish man with a long white beard that was platted in places and held with small brass beads. He looked too familiar for Cooper's comfort. He eyed her in return with a wary stare before turning his attention back to Sir Barnaby.  
"Braxton!" the old faun exclaimed in an excited greeting, "it's been a while!"  
Sir Barnaby introduced the battle-hardened dwarf as Braxton Frostbeard, head of the Frostbeard family and renowned thief. He introduced the party members in turn, and Braxton gave a small nod.  
"Found a job, ey Cooper?" he asked, recognition in his warm brown eyes. Cooper stared at him in confusion before it hit her. Her blood froze.  
"You're the bartender" she managed, and he confirmed with a nod and a chuckle. He seemed calm, possibly not even knowing what she had done in the bar - or at least she hoped. "from uh... that town?"  
"Aye, good enough" he shrugged, reaching his hand out, to which she shook in return. "Good to see you doing something for yourself. Now! Barnaby, you came here for maps, you're welcome to my collection, my friend."

The old dwarf clapped his hands and lead the four of them through what was presumably his home, and down the stairs into a deep stone cellar. The stairs were made of creaking dark wood that felt structurally unsafe. Cooper cautiously followed closely behind Rachel, putting a hand on the taller woman's shoulder for support.  
The staircase opened up into a large room, roughly the size of the upstairs and filled with as many bookshelves and tables that could fit. A mix of humans, elves and dwarves milled about the library-like room, carrying books or studying maps. A large map of Kirus hung on the wall, with smaller maps pinned to certain sections to show a few cities and towns.  
A bulky redheaded dwarf ran over to the group with a cocky grin on their face which was partially concealed by their bushy, greying beard. They were a little taller than Braxton, but that might have been due to Braxton's slouch, and thick with muscle. The old dwarf sighed at the sight of them.  
"Ellys, I thought you had left" he grumbled, muttering something under his breath that might have been a curse before turning back to the crew, "this is my eldest daughter, Ellys. Try to ignore her."  
"Dad, please" she chuckled in response, her voice higher than Cooper had expected, and her accent hard to place - it might have been Akeldaman although Cooper didn't know enough about the place. "I'm getting out of your beard, promise. I was just heading out"  
Braxton took another sceptical look at Cooper and the group, or maybe just Cooper herself before turning to Sir Barnaby, "would you mind lending your help for a few hours? I'd rather it if Ellys doesn't get herself killed. We'll be here for hours - no use boring the poor kids."  
"Ah yes, of course," Sir Barnaby agreed almost instantly, nodding with such force his round glasses almost flew from his face. "Rachel and...Cooke, was it? You go with Ellys. Finn too, if you wish."  
"I don't need babysitting" huffed Ellys.  
"Who says it's you who's getting babysat?" remarked Braxton, leaving Cooper and Rachel to groan and make noises of disapproval like the twenty-year-olds they were, both on the prospect of needing a guardian and that he had gotten Cooper's name wrong _again_.  
After a long while of consideration, Cooper and Rachel gave into Braxton's idea only on the basis that it would give Rachel more time to see the city itself and continue her own goal of retracing her family history. Finn had decided to stay behind with Sir Barnaby in order to help with research, opting to fill the women in on the details afterwards. Ellys continued huffing and protesting that she didn't need any help with whatever she was doing, but gave in as long as it meant that she could be done with it by the end of the day.

And so, the newly formed trio set off into the city, led by the ginger dwarf. Ellys was stout and clad in fine black armour, which Cooper would have assumed meant that she was a vigilante or criminal of some kind to hide in the shadows, if not for the woman's cloak. The cloak was an eye-catching apple green that Cooper couldn't for the life of her understand the advantage of - and this coming from a Templar whose colours were silver and purple. At least her armour was made _for_ her to stand out, not whatever Ellys was attempting to accomplish.  
Ellys led them through dark alleys, stopping every once in a while to look over her shoulder or to hiss at the two soldiers to quieten down.  
"Where are we even going?" questioned Cooper after they had ventured down what seemed to be the thirtieth back alley, or that they were going in circles.  
Ellys stopped and turned abruptly, staring up at Cooper with large, unfocused green eyes. Her mouth parted in a way that suggested she was going to say something, but shut it quickly, letting out a deep breath through her nose. After a few seconds, she shook her head and started again. "The Pit".  
Rachel glanced at Cooper then back at Ellys. "The...Pit?"  
"Yeah."  
"Awesome. Sounds cosy."  
Ellys didn't seem to catch Rachel's sarcasm, only nodding and scampering off again down the same lane they passed not too long ago. Rachel groaned loudly.  
"Gods, she's driving me mad. Does she even know where she's going?"  
"Beats me," Cooper shrugged and leaned her shoulder against the wall, wiping her brow with the back of her tattered cotton sleeve. "Why don't we wait here a while? At this rate, she'll be back soon enough"  
"We've been chasing our tail for almost an hour, it's getting ridiculous" sighed Rachel, her voice tapering out into a low growl that reverberated from deep within her chest.  
Cooper's eyes widened for a moment before the realization hit her, "oh, werewolf, yeah."  
Rachel gave her a confused smile, trying to sus her out. It was a marvel that Cooper had yet again let it slip her mind, even though Rachel didn't look like the average werewolf. "We've been roommates since we were sixteen and you forgot that?" asked Rachel, raising an eyebrow.  
"Heh, yeah, maybe."  
"Dumbass" Rachel rolled her eyes, playfully pushing Cooper.  
"I should probably be more aware of it after four years"  
"You mean five, right?"  
Cooper frowned but shrugged, "yeah maybe, never been too good with numbers".

The two stood around waiting for the return of Ellys. As several minutes turned into hours, the sun turning to hide behind the clouds casting the two women in shadows. Their idle banter turned to discomfort and complaining, growing more and more in edge as the day passed. Cooper scratched at her arms in agitation, running her nails over the blackened brand on the inside of her wrist.  
"I think we've been had" she murmured, mostly to herself as Rachel had taken to pacing the street instead, but she trusted that she could hear her regardless.  
Rachel had turned at the bottom of the straight path and made her way back, kicking at the ground as she went and showing no indication that she had, in fact, heard. Cooper let out a large sigh and slumped back against the wall, staring at her friend with heavily hooded eyes. "Rachel? We've been had."  
The other woman stopped her pacing a few metres away from the Templar, shooting a glare her way. "This is the last time I'm ever following your ideas, Alexx. Gods, I have no idea how you were ever considered for promotion."  
Cooper pressed her lips tightly together face reddening at the use of her name, before clearing her throat and avoiding her friend's gaze. The name was more shocking than the words that followed. Cooper also had no idea how she was considered for the role of Captain in her squad, and it was a relief when Mycah had been brought forward instead even if she had been in the Temple for a lot less than Cooper herself. It wasn't an opinion she was allowed to share publicly, but she was happier to follow than she ever would have been leading.

The two stayed in silence for a short while, before the decision to track down the dwarf might be the best option they had. Weaving through the brassy streets, looking for any sign of the stout redhead. Rachel stopped passersby to ask around for Ellys, leaving Cooper to hang back self consciously, kicking at the cobblestone.  
Dust and soot billowed around their feet as they walked, the grime caked to their scuffed shoes. The streets passed in shades of dull browns, each barely identifiable from the last. Cooper winced as pain shot up her leg from where her knee rubbed against her prosthetic - it was only ever supposed to be temporary until she had a new one fitted, but due to lack of money and time, she tried to forget about it. She felt horrible at the idea of asking Sir Barnaby for her payment early, let alone letting the old man pay for it himself as he'd probably be willing to due to his seemingly kind nature. After the fourth or fifth time, she sharply sucked in a breath, Rachel abruptly stopped, giving Cooper a concerned once over.  
"Hey look, a post office. I wouldn't mind sending back something to Danny and Leon, want to stop for a bit?" she asked, trying and failing to keep pity from veiling her voice.  
"No need to stop for my sake, Ray, I'll be fine," Cooper said with a dry chuckle. This had been their routine back at the academy. Cooper would push herself too hard as per the expectations of her status as a Templar, and Rachel would make an excuse for her to rest for a while. Cooper chalked it up to Rachel being the alpha of her newly formed pack, although Rachel would disagree and try to convince Cooper that they were friends, and that's what friends did. The Templar was still warming up to the idea. She had been expected to act in similar ways in order to take on leadership herself, albeit harsher.  
"Wait a second," she continued, the realisation hitting her like a sack of potatoes that Mycah typically threw at her in combat training unprompted, "why Leon?"  
"He's my boyfriend?" Rachel raised an eyebrow, "speaking of, you want to send something to Jordan to let her know you're alive? I'll write if you dictate."  
_Jordan_. It had been months since she had seen her, spoken to her, _held_ her. She wasn't sure what she'd say, and she felt that an "I'm not dead! Sorry!" wasn't going to cut it after all their years together. They didn't have enough time for a full letter, not with them tailing Ellys Frostbeard. As much as Cooper would have liked a longer message to send, she decided that she'd survive with the short note and send a more in-depth letter at the next post office they found if they had the time. It would also mean not pouring her heart out to her friend while she wrote, as Cooper's own handwriting was abysmal and barely legible. After a few minutes of deciding, and helpful interjections from Rachel, she managed to get down a note less than a hundred words letting Jordan know that she was alive, that she was now travelling alongside Rachel in Adanak, and that she loved and missed her. The ending was a bit sappy for Cooper's liking, but every word was true, even if Rachel had waxed poetic.  
Rachel sent the letters, plus one extra for their friend and dorm mate Casper upon Cooper's insistence. He was her closest friend, after all, it seemed only fair. The duo asked the postmaster if they had seen Ellys recently, or at the very least knew where 'The Pit' was. He nodded and dotted it on a map, and the two set off once more.

The Pit was a fighting arena that could be found underneath a barber's shop near the centre of the city. Grey concrete and bright lights as far as the eye can see, over the writhing crowd before them. If the slippery red-headed dwarf was here, it was impossible to tell. Hundreds packed like sardines in a can for the chance to catch a glimpse of the stage where two men bludgeoned each other, sending teeth and blood flying over the front few rows. Cooper gagged at the smell around her, holding a hand tightly over her mouth. Rachel didn't look much better, her face scrunched tightly. A pang of sympathy rang through Cooper, the knowledge that Rachel having heightened smell making her steel herself. If Rachel could deal, so could she.  
A sharp elbow dug into Cooper's ribs, causing her to yelp and turn to fight whoever it was, but they had already shuffled along in the sea of people. Cooper felt a snarl building in her chest and lunged forward to go after someone, anyone, but Rachel pulled her back and shot her a concerned look.  
'Chill' she mouthed, nodding her head to the side to indicate a side door that was guarded but had fewer people surrounding it. Cooper shook her head as if to rid whatever had come over her with not much luck. She shot a wobbly grin at Rachel, which didn't seem to ease her worries.  
Cooper got dragged through the crowd, Rachel parting the people the best she could but there were too many piled in. They finally came out the other side, slick with sweat and panting into the fresh ( _fresher_ , at least) air. Rachel heaved a near agonized sigh before grabbing Cooper by the front of her damp white shirt and pinned her to the wall. Cooper tried to push back, but the werewolf was stronger, but strangely didn't seem as strong as she used to be.  
"What the fuck has gotten into you?" growled Rachel, her brown eyes never leaving Cooper's bright blues.  
Cooper's eyes flickered, searching Rachel's face. She swallowed thickly, going to reply when a loud voice cut across her.  
"Ay, take it to the ring!" a man bellowed, voice heavy with the effects of alcohol. Rachel turned her head to the noise, shooting a glare in the general direction. Before she could holler back the man's words became a chant, slowly but surely rippling across the ocean of bodies around them.  
"To the ring! To the ring! _To the ring!_ "

Rachel scowled at Cooper once more before letting her go, her gaze distrustful at the woman she had lived in close quarters with for the past few years.  
"If there's no other way out" shrugged Rachel, causing the ones around her to roar in satisfaction, which yet again triggered the ripple effect across the crowd.  
Cooper's ears rung a single piercing note, but her other senses were clear as day. She could feel every notch in the ground as she got dragged to the stage, see every person in the back rows, smell all the blood and perspiration that infused the arena from every person that fought before her. She and Rachel were haphazardly thrown at the ring, ragdolling over the rough rope that surrounded the octagonal area. She huffed as she fought to catch the breath that got knocked out to her, heaving herself over the side and into the ring.  
Rachel moved to the opposite side, wrapping her hands with yellowed bandages that lay on the edge. She cracked her neck and got into stance. Cooper wet her lips and tugged off her shirt, not trusting it to say clean during the fight. A ripple of gasps come from around her at the sight of her Temple markings - the crescent moon and half star of Omera that was carved into the flesh of her back. It was that or the various wounds she had suffered over the years, but most likely the former due to the Shalian stance on the Mabrisian Gods.  
"No holding back now, Coop. Just like back at the Academy."  
Rachel's words weren't comforting, in fact, they were quite the opposite. Cooper was never the best at hand to hand combat, not even close. She fought with sword and shield and could use a crossbow at a push, however she felt naked without a blade in hand. Her muscles twitched as she mirrored Rachel's stance, as strong as she appeared it was all quite superficial when she didn't know how to use it properly.  
The announcer walked into the arena, over to Rachel where they exchanged hushed words that Cooper could make out as an introduction. He nodded and swiftly walked over towards Cooper.  
"What's the name, kid?"

Cooper opened her mouth to answer, and hesitated. This was her chance to be more than a Templar, at least for a little while. She wet her lips again. "Alexx Cooper" she finally managed, her throat like coarse sand. The man nodded and walked to the centre of the ring.  
"And now for our newcomers! Rachel Godrick-!" he paused, letting the crowd yell encouragement, heckles, and scream before continuing, "and Alexx Cooper!"  
The name hummed in her brain, kicking off emotions she didn't think she could _have_. Alexx. Alexx. _Alexx_. The name felt _right_ spoken allowed. She felt a smile pull at her lips but forced it down. Rachel furrowed her brow in confusion but didn't say anything for or against it. She was so elated that she didn't care. This was _her._ She _was_ Alexx again _._ The name her mother gave her, not the name of the man who sold her to her duty for his own peace of mind. She was so caught up in her own giddy thoughts that she almost didn't hear the bell ring.  
Rachel didn't take any chances. She lunched and swiped before the bell could finish reverberating its sound. Alexx narrowly dodged, blocking the next incoming attack with ease. That fact alone took Rachel off guard. Alexx wasn't good at hand to hand combat - a fact that everyone at the Academy knew. Yet here she was, dodging and blocking with the best of them. She threw a jab. She blocked. She swerved out the way of a strong punch. Rachel reeled back, giving the two women a chance to catch their breath and assess the next move. The taller woman regarded Alexx with distrust, eyes raking over her body to look for a weakness that she hadn't needed to know before. Alexx had no idea what was happening. It was almost as if she could _see_ Rachel's moves before she made them, which was impossible. Seers did not exist.  
Rachel wiped her dripping brow, nodding at Alexx to show she's ready to go again. Alexx almost breathed a sigh of relief, instead nodding back. The two women lunged at each other, a tangle of limbs. They were no longer playing it safe. They were different. _Alexx_ was different. Something was not quite right.

Alexx snarled as her lip split, tongue darting over the wound. Blood filled her mouth, igniting something deep and primal in the back of her brain. Her throat tightened. A low animalistic growl rumbled in her chest like thunder.  
"Ray - Rachel" she forced out, pulling back and putting a few steps of distance between her and her friend. Rachel's chest heaved, her unfocused eyes shining amber. "W-we need to end this. Now."  
Alexx cursed her shaking words. Rachel stared at her blankly for what seemed like minutes but could have only been seconds before nodding. Rachel stepped back a few more paces. All they needed was a victor. Alexx trusted Rachel not to kill her, but herself? She was in uncharted territory in her current state. Alexx got back into stance, only barely, before the full weight of Rachel Godrick; heiress and warrior slammed into her and pinned her to the ground.  
Alexx could vaguely hear three sharp whistles, muffled by the blood roaring in her veins. Rachel deflated on top of her, heaving sharp breaths before descending into an uneven laugher. Alexx wished she could do the same, but she felt that she was more likely to throw up.  
The two eventually got up, Rachel leading with Alexx following behind with swaying steps. Whatever had come over her was gone, but the aftermath made her feel drunk. She swallowed down bile, vision blurring until she found herself sitting on a barstool hunched over the bar itself. She could hear the hum of conversation around her, but felt too queasy and exhausted to tune in properly. She lay her head against the cool wooden surface and closed her eyes. She'd be fine, as long she so could sleep for a...

Alexx's eyes opened slowly, looking around the unfamiliar room. She felt that she should start to get used to this. First the grave, then the tavern, and now... definitely somewhere. She sat up slowly from where she lay on a dark pink, velvet chaise lounge, rubbing her forehead and squinting at her surroundings. The room was decorated in black and white, mainly in the striped wallpaper that hung across each wall in the small room. The furniture was in various shades of pink and green, causing Alexx to curl her lip in disgust. In another chaise lounge(how Alexx remembered that word so clearly was beyond her) opposite her sat Rachel and a familiar redhead. Ellys Frostbeard. Alexx growled, but it wasn't from her chest this time. She flushed in embarrassment. How could she be hungry at a time like this? She stared defiantly at the other two in the room, who stared back. Rachel was seemingly trying to keep her expression neutral, despite it pulling down into disbelief, and not the positive kind. Ellys grinned as wide as their mouth would let them, letting out a deep chuckle that resonated from their entire being.  
"Oh hey, you're awake" she noted, leaning back casually and keeping their eyes on Alexx. "We have a lot of catching up to do, it seems."

The trek back was a short one. Ellys had (thankfully) shown them a shortcut and not wound them around the city this time. The young dwarf seemed excited about the fight that the other two women had, and was skillfully dodging each question they had about her whereabouts. Ellys enthusiastically made motions with her hands as she recounted the fight as if Rachel and Alexx hadn't been there what so ever.  
Alexx had thankfully gotten a new shirt out of the ordeal, proudly wearing the dark red t-shirt with the arena's logo splayed across the front. Rachel had hers scrunched in her hand, hanging by her side like a memory she'd rather forget. Alexx glanced back at her friend that trailed dejectedly behind herself and their ward. She felt that she had messed up somehow, that maybe after all this time they had grown apart as different people. It had been almost a year apart, following two completely separate quests, with all their new traumas and memories, plus with whatever the hell was happening to Alexx. She didn't know how Rachel felt, but she wanted to make amends somehow. Whatever happened back at The Pit, it wasn't _her_. She was a Templar of Omera, those types of actions were beneath her and yet she acted lowlier than a caged animal. Rachel had been soft on her, overall, if she had acted out in her squadron Mycah would have been forced to give punishment or worse.  
Rachel's face was furrowed in concentration, her gaze on the road rather than the world before her. Alexx could feel a sharp pang of _something_ in her chest, but whether it was regret, sadness, or guilt she wasn't sure. She sighed and turned her gaze back in front of her again, only vaguely tuning back into Ellys talking about the fight again. It was a marvel how much she could say about the brief fight, it was almost impressive, but Alexx could barely focus. She had messed things up with one of her closest friends, and she had no idea how to fix it, if she _could_ even fix it.

She was a murderer. That's the truth of the matter. It was a truth that she had forced to the back of her mind, but it didn't make it any less real. Whatever was happening to her, it made her dangerous. She could have hurt Rachel. Badly. She needed to pull herself together, she was trained to be better than this for crying out loud.  
"Cooper? You coming in?" Ellys' voice cut through Alexx's thoughts. Alexx broke out of her mental spiralling to find that she was standing in front of the Frostbeard home, with Ellys standing in the doorway and Rachel already inside.  
"Yeah, yeah I'm coming" she nodded, following the redhead inside.

They were shown to a room that they could stay, Finn making himself at home on one of the roll-up beds that the Frostbeards had let the three of them borrow. Rachel barely gave her a second look, and the times she _did_ glance at Alexx she looked conflicted, and it couldn't have been only due to Alexx suddenly being good at fighting. No, not after she was ready to attack a bystander over getting jostled in a heaving club.  
She lay down on top of her borrowed bed, pulling the scratchy blanket up around her shoulders. The ceiling was filled with cracks that mirrored her own scarring, small connecting lines creating a constellation of broken pieces. Her eyes were weight down but the events of the day, despite the fact that she had already slept not too long ago.

She was rudely awakened by the door denting the wall. Metal scraped as armoured figures poured inside, swords clanking against their shields. Alexx sat up sharply, blanket held up tightly against her chest. Finn had jumped to his feet, hands held out before him slightly curled. Rachel looked around groggily at the intrusion, before getting up herself and brandishing the knife she kept in her metal hand.  
Three heavily armoured guards stood in the doorway, brandishing weapons. The one in front, presumably their leader pulled off their helmet, revealing a scarred woman in her mid-fifties, with long dull blonde hair that fell down around her shoulders. Besides her, a white-haired dwarf emerged, pointing a stubby finger at Alexx. Braxton Frostbeard.  
"That's the one," said the old man, voice sharp and low. "She's the one who killed Scout Williams."  
Somewhere to her left Finn growled, stepping in front of her. Alexx scampered to her feet. She had no weapon, and no way out, but she wasn't going to let Finn - a man who didn't pay her any attention outside of orders - to take the fall for her.  
"Do you have proof of this?" came Rachel's voice, tired but still commanding. She looked at Alexx as if wanting to hear her side but they didn't have the time.  
"Mr Frostbeard witnessed the crime" the guard leader stepped forward, hand on the hilt of her sword.  
"Not one more step" warned Finn. His hands glowed a soft yellow, the air around him rippling with heat.  
"It's one of those bloody fire wielders" one of the other guards commented, the guard leader nodded and unsheathed her sword.  
Alexx lunged forward, but she wasn't fast enough. A jet of white-hot flame burst from Finn's hands, eating away at the guards and the room. They were like dry tinder, metal turning liquid. Alexx could feel her skin blister at the heat as she shielded herself with her arms. She felt a tug and turned to watch Rachel throw the roll-up beds out the window before diving out.  
"Finn, come _on_!" said Alexx hurriedly before following Rachel's lead.

The trio landed on the beds outside, which barely did anything to cushion their fall, only to be greeted by a dozen more guards. Rachel made a sound of discomfort before raising her hands in surrender, Alexx copying.  
"This is fine, yeah?" she whispered to Alexx, a look of hope written across her face. "They're going to find that you're innocent."

Alexx didn't reply.

"Coop? You didn't kill her, right? Oh, Gods please tell me you didn't."

Alexx couldn't lie to her.

She slowly walked towards the guards, trying to ignore the betrayed expression on her friend's face, and lowered herself to the ground.

It had been days since then, maybe weeks. It was hard to tell within the windowless stone cells that resided beneath the city. Above them came the sound of rushing water from the Perrin River that wove its way like a ribbon of colour through the most dilapidated parts of the mechanical city.  
The dungeon itself lay at the bottom of a long spiral staircase leading from the back of the Sheriff's building, where he could easily check-in when necessary. Thick green mould grew from the ceiling, cascading the walls with the only vibrant colour Alexx had seen for a while amongst the greys and browns. Torches stuck out from their holders on the walls, bathing the wide corridor with a sickly yellow light that danced freely against the stone, taunting the inmates with its freedom. The cells had been built to barely have room to stretch out, to press in as many prisoners as they could. The only thing separating each of the small cubes were more bars that left no privacy. The man in the cell next to Alexx was surely dead, as she hadn't witnessed him move, and he smelt like a sewer. The cries and wails got carried on the cold draft that leaked from further down the line of decrepit beings; from whatever punishment they endured. If prison was anything like the Temple back in the heart of Syi Dorei, the crime could have been anything ranging from minor disagreements to major actions.

A deep sense of regret blanketed over her, weighing heavily on her chest. She was once on the other side of the bars, looking in on some poor miscreant that she had jailed. It was what was expected of her. her duty as a Templar. She wasn't allowed to feel remorse, she was doing good for the Temple, spreading their word, and fighting against those who opposed it. She went through the motions, said the right words, patrolled the streets, jailed aggressors. It wasn't until now until she had time to truly think, that she realized that the Temple might not be as good as she was raised to believe. Yet, they had still clothed her, fed her when they hadn't needed to. They had been good to her, good as any family she had seen in her twenty years of life.  
"Sacred Mother, eternal light in Darkness, hear my voice -" she repeated yet again, for the Goddess she was raised to follow. Her voice was like smoke, thin and wispy, and completely overpowered by Finn's gravelly tone.  
"Fuck _off_ Cooper, your parasites can't hear you," he whined, the sound drier than it used to be.  
"Yeah, I know."  
Finn huffed and slunk back against the wall in the cell opposite her. His eyes sunken deep into his skull from the lack of sleep and proper food, his hair unkempt and face gaunt. Alexx didn't look any better herself, what with her matted hair that clung to her forehead and hung in her eyes almost concealing the heavy bags that lay beneath.  
"What happened?" he asked, softer. Seeing that the look of confusion that Alexx must have worn, he continued. "They charged you for murder, you must have had a good reason"  
"I thought you hated me."  
Finn laughed, "I'm indifferent about you, there's a difference. I've seen you and Rachel interact, you seem like a decent person."  
"Well, evidently not" whispered Alexx, just loud enough for him to hear. Alexx couldn't face him. Not now.

Some warrior she was. The Academy would never welcome her back now, not after this mistake that had ruined her flawless record. Neither of the two young adults even knew what had happened to their employer. Barnaby hadn't been arrested alongside them, and neither had Rachel. Barnaby could have been released or killed, and neither would be any the wiser, while they couldn't keep Rachel in if they tried. Her family and connections would never allow it. The two remaining members of the group were stranded without Sir Barnaby's help, with no connections, no money, and no transport. Alexx doubted that her letter had reached anyone back in Mabristan yet, leaving her friends without the knowledge of her whereabouts.  
A chasm of hunger opened in her stomach, growling for a feast she could not satisfy. The want pricked its way under her skin like worms burrowing through the soil, her throat dry as sand. Her mind fluttered back to her last fix, the start of her dependence. Her lips stuck tight to a young woman's throat, precious ruby liquid flowing freely down her lips from what she could not swallow. A forbidden craving, especially by Temple standards - how could she go home like this?  
A brief pang of shame and guilt passed over her, though it was quickly overpowered by the need to feed, to fill, to consume. The need battled with her common sense, her nerves. The same need that had emerged during her fight with Rachel, but now so strong she could recognise it far easier. She paced her cell like a caged animal, gritted teeth and curled hands. Her cheek must have caught between her teeth, as the taste of old iron flooded her mouth, thick and hot. Stale. The flavour would have made her wince if it hadn't also stoked her need like a raging fire. The same flames that ordered her to consume.  
The feeling had crept in slowly, an unrecognizable shift in the constant hunger pangs that came with the amount she ate. Gradually, it mutated and twisted into something much more, sapping at her senses as Alexx tried to control it. Now it had become a raging, deep-seated part of her brain, clawing and digging to gain more control.  
The bars were the only thing holding her back from her next meal. In her tight cell, she was safe. Safe from herself. A strange stroke of luck, being arrested. She wouldn't recommend the stay to anyone, but for now, it was paradise. She could stay here till she inevitably died and not lose her restraint and hurt another soul.

Alexx had never believed in luck.

The thick wooden door at the head of the stairs opened with a bang against the stone walls. The sound ricocheted through the halls, leaving a silence in its wake. Muffled chatter and the clattering of metal heeled shoes filled the air of the cells. Finn stepped closer to the bars, eyes shining with a light that Alexx hadn't seen since they were locked up. Alexx kept herself away from the bars, senses overflowing and muddling her thoughts. She felt the cold, damp wall moisten the clothes on her back, shocking her brain into a mild coherence.  
The clacking of shoes got louder, their voices becoming clearer with each step. Alexx strained to hear over the roaring blood in her veins, throbbing through her ear canal.  
"And you're certain that your missing Templar is here?" came the confused, rough voice of the Sheriff. Alexx had never gotten his name, barely even saw his face. She must have been drugged or charmed when she was brought in; all her memories were hazy, even then, after however long she had been kept. "Not to mean any disrespect, but these are criminals we're talking about, sir. Not your God-fearing soldiers."  
The other man hummed in thought, "We shall see. The blood is never wrong".  
The voice triggered some semblance of recognition in Alexx, but her mind was a swirling haze and she couldn't connect the voice to a face. The feeling nagged at her under the current of want and hunger that drowned her.  
The world blurred around her in splashes of desaturated colour. She rubbed at her raw, dry eyes and groaned as they stung. Her body felt heavy, pins and needles ran up her legs - _leg_ she had to remind herself, but the phantom pain remained regardless. Her fingers felt cold, numb. The footsteps were closer now - the sound thudding along with the pulse in her skull. She was ready to throw up the little contents of her stomach, acidic bile burning her throat. Keys jangled and screeched as they fumbled to open the walls of her safe haven. Alexx kept her eyes shut in an effort to control and round herself. She didn't want to be a monster. She didn't want to be free.  
A smooth, accentless voice cut through her as she shivered with exertion.

"Ah, Cooper. Time to go home."


	6. 5

Alexx dug her nails deep into the cured leather seat she was unceremoniously strapped to. Her hands, which carved lines in the hide between her knees, had been tied together with a strong rope, while her torso had been held up tight to the back of the chair with a thick strip of a fabric she couldn't quite recognize. Whatever it was, it dug into her chest and crushed her ribs. At least she believed that it was, but it might have been the panic coursing through her veins.  
Omeron, the head priest of the Temple of Omera, sat opposite her in the metal casket that sped down the dirt roads. It was worse than dying, and she was sure she had that experience. That she had truly died in the forest. She could feel every rock and bump in the road, jostling her about. A low, desperate whine grew at the back of her throat as they sped over a particularly uneven stretch of road.  
"Cooper, you will sit _quietly_ " barked Omeron, whose gaze never left the thick, yellowed book he was reading. Cooper ceased her whining, instead worrying at her lip till she tasted blood. Omeron sighed and slammed his book shut, staring up at her with glossy grey eyes. "Now, little lion cub, would it help for you to _explain_ the circumstance I found you in?"  
Cooper opened her mouth to answer but closed it just as fast. She shook her head frantically, in response. Omeron looked displeased, placing his book to one side and leaning forward the best he could with the chair strap around his torso.  
"I'm not going to ask again," he said, voice deep and threatening. The same tone he'd use when he'd lock her in a closet or give her lashes for stepping out of line.  
Despite him not truly asking her to explain, she knew that it wasn't a choice she could make. With a stuttering breath, an attempt to calm the storm within her, she answered.  
"I just wanted to come home."  
Cooper winced at how meek she sounded, her voice soft and quivering. She was as Omeron had said - the Lion of the Temple, whatever the hell that meant. She was supposed to be better than this, yet as always she became no more than a child in his presence. She had only met him officially three times in her life, first when she came to the Temple, second when she was accepted into Stykes Academy at sixteen, and now; when he had to bail her out of prison.  
"Of course you did" nodded Omeron, "you're still a mewling child, after all."  
Cooper wanted to argue back but bit her tongue. She wanted his approval, after all. This was the man who ran the Temple, this was the man that took her in when her own family refused. He _was_ her family.

Her mind had drifted back to life at the Temple. Grey stone walls, soft purple velvet, and more importantly _home_. It was more her home than her small, isolated dorm room was by a landslide. The barracks and their abundance of tired bodies were a comfort she couldn't find in the Academy. Now that she had nothing else to focus on, she couldn't put her homesickness to one side. She knew that this was just a daydream, but she couldn't bear to stop. That would mean not seeing her people for another undetermined amount of time.  
The main hall was almost empty as usual, with only priests milling about with their books and scrolls. Cooper found herself in the centre of the aisle in between mahogany pews, the marble cold under her feet. She caught a glimpse of herself in one of the mirrors that lined the walls. She was younger, unscarred and unweathered by time. She remembered this.  
Cooper was sixteen again, a hopeful youth who hadn't seen the hardships of life yet. Not truly. No scars, two legs, and a mind free of thunderclouds and doubt. She'd trade her future for a chance to try again, to be better this time around. If she had known what was going to happen to her, she'd never had accepted the offer.  
"Ah, Alexxyn, our lion cub," said Omeron, her name a rare sign of respect from the elder. He hadn't looked any different than he had now. He had been a rotund, withered old man since Cooper could remember. It had been the second time she had ever spoken to the man, but she had seen him overseeing the Temple staff often enough while growing up.  
She never understood why she was hailed as the lion cub. It had been that way since she had joined the Temple. It hadn't anything to do with the Cooper family, the ones who sold her, she had known that much, but its origin was unclear. It was easier to not question the higher-ups, and 'lion cub' had been one of the nicer nicknames issued by the Temple staff.  
She dipped into a low bow, it was ingrained into her muscle memory by now, ninety-degree angle and face pointing to the floor, holding it for a few seconds before straightening back out. It was a trait that had slowly been ironed out from her in the Academy - it made her stand out for the Templar she was - but seeing herself as the child she had triggered something within her.  
"Omeron, sir" she nodded, back straight and shoulders back, her pauldrons bobbing with the movement. "You asked to see me?"  
"You've been accepted into Stykes Academy, congratulations" he nodded, his voice almost monotonous, hiding any sign of the approval that Cooper had craved. It was back in a time where she had pegged all her worth based on what the adults around her thought. Not much had changed, really, except that it hadn't hurt as much when it wasn't given as freely as she'd see other families give.  
Later that day she found herself in the Temple gardens, tending to her duties as the guardian to the younger members in her unit. Daniels and Alistair had gotten into yet another fight over some forgetful nonsense, Mayburn and Rhydderch were -

Cooper had snapped back to reality, Omeron staring at her expectantly. It was then when Cooper realised that he must have asked her a question. She stared back with wide eyes. Omeron stared back, eyes unblinking as if trying to drain the answers from her. Cooper pressed her mouth into a thin line. Omeron sighed.  
"Pay attention, cub."  
"Sorry sir."  
"As I was saying, we're here."  
'Here' turned out to be an ivory coloured building with the iron gates and stone lions standing guard. Lush gardens with an abundance of different flowers and exotic plants surrounded the property. Hanging above the door was a shield, presumably made from sabrian as it reflected a rainbow similar to how oil looks in water and hadn't given into the harsh weathers. The shield itself was adorned with metal thorns around its edge, and a copper lion's head snarling at those who come near.  
Omeron unlatched Cooper from the unholy contraption that kept her stuck to the seat seemingly known as a 'seatbelt'. Whatever had come over her in her cell had subsided, for now, curling back into the deeper parts of her brain still very much there. Instead, it was replaced with the fluttering feeling of dull excitement blooming deep within her chest. She was finally able to go home, yet the feeling rang hollow. As much as she longed to return, could she really show her face the way she was now? When she had no idea what was even happening to her? She was still certain that she had died, that there was no way of surviving an attack the way she had. Yet she was still alive, spared by Omera. Her life must have meant something, even if it did come back to her continuing on her duties as a Templar.  
The inside of the manor was equally as grand, if not more so. The red and gold wallpaper had a velvety texture as Cooper ran her fingers across it, stopping to run her hand over it properly with a look of wonder decorating her face. Omeron flashed her a frustrated look and she snatched her hand away, keeping it at her side and rolling her calloused fingertips together chasing the feeling. The floor was a soft carpet that her feet sank into, and she turned her attention to that instead. The sensation was like walking through light snow without the chill or the crunch. It was a marvel to her that she was allowed to stay in such luxury, after being raised within hardwood and marble. Even the academy hadn't been as nice; scratchy carpet and chipboard walls filled her dorm, and the constant smell of smoke permeated the air.  
She was lead through the grand hallway, past an elegant dining room that she couldn't help but poke her head around the doorframe to catch a glance, but still they didn't stop. Each of the rooms she had past felt grander than the last, each outdoing the other in style and content. At last, Omeron had stopped to unlock a door, taking his time rattling the key in its hole. Cooper could barely standstill with the enthusiasm and interest of seeing what other wonders could be unveiled. The door swung open with a loud creak to reveal -

A narrow storage room.

There stood the armour she wore as a Templar. She assumed that she'd be getting another set, of course, since hers had been damaged and sold, but what stood in the narrow space was _her_ armour. Damaged, worn, and unusable would be some of the kinder words Cooper would say. The metal had warped and stuck out in places, even curling _in_ in some places like tiny daggers ready to bite at her flesh. The once long, majestic purple cloth that held the sigil of her Goddess had torn, and what hadn't been completely ripped away was stained with the dark colour of her own blood. The breastplate was nowhere near the shape it was supposed to be, now concaved and dull without the typical sabrian shine.  
"Uh, sir? Where did you find this?" she squeaked out.  
"Would you care to explain why I had to buy it back from pirates?" he spat back, Cooper flinched and crumpled in on herself involuntarily, "put it on, it's yours after all."  
"Sir?"  
"Put it on, cub."

Cooper hesitated, eyeing the armour wearily but relented, going into the small room and shutting the door behind her willing Omeron to not lock it behind her. She fiddled for the light switch, her hands finally finding a cord that she pulled only for the bulb overhead to give off a dim light that was barely there. Slowly she tugged on her armour, wincing as she buckled the straps firm over her form. The warped plating made it far harder to set, and the sharp bits that folded in made her cautious but she knew she had to suit up as correctly as she could. She could afford to make it tighter on her false leg - after all, it was only wood under there. Still, she could feel the plating of her breastplate slice her stomach and graze her wounds that hadn't completely healed over. She sucked in a sharp breath and slowly exhaled, steeling herself for what came next; opening the door.  
Each step dug into her thighs and cut into her skin. The weight was different now than it ever was, disproportionate and causing her to lean heavily to the left. Her stomach rolled with the sharp pangs of pain with each small movement. Omeron seemed pleased, a small smile tugging at his thin lips but gave no other reaction. It was a sight that rattled her to her core, sickened her. He watched her shuffle forward, placing a heavy hand on her shoulder to straighten the stance that sent a wave of white-hot pain through her side causing her vision to blur and blacken briefly before coming to further down the hallway than she was before. Whether she had actually walked those metres or got dragged, she wasn't sure.  
Her mind swam between consciousness and darkness, drifting between the two states as frequently as the tide laps the sand. Her throat felt tight and dry, her breath coming in sharp pants. She was in a different part of the manor now, where exactly she wasn't sure. Black and white checkered tile clicked under her armoured feet, scraping as she dragged her heels as she was tugged along. She knew very little of chess, but couldn't help feel it's irony as if she was a knight being lead to the slaughter.  
They came to a stop in what seemed to be a pantry; or was a pantry, at least, the shelves were mostly empty besides from a thick mass of cobwebs and dust. Whoever owned the manor couldn't have used this part much, if at all. A large wooden door stood before her, it's face decorated in faded gold flowers. Omeron pulled out a thick metal key from his robes, pressing it into the lock and forcefully unlocking it.  
Stairs descended into darkness, it's bottom unfathomable. Omeron ushered her towards them, the stench of dampness, unwashed bodies and an underlining tone of iron that sparked something in the back of her brain. She reluctantly lowered herself down the first step - using her _real_ leg, not trusting what her prosthetic would do on stairs when she could not supervise it properly. The movement shook her to her core, her armour jerking and cutting further into her skin. She felt a warm, languid wetness trickle down her stomach even more so than it had been. She continued down, fumbling for a handrail that wasn't there, stumbling forward before catching herself against the brought brick of the wall. Halfway down she felt her foot slip in the slick wooden steps. She tumbled forwards, unable to catch herself. Her shoulders bounced off the wood as she rolled, bile rising in her throat.

She awoke at the bottom, which she noted was becoming an increasing problem in her life. If she had died yet again, it was only a small mercy that she still drew breath. Omera wasn't finished with her pawn just yet, and Cooper feared that her duty still bound her despite all that's happened. There, crammed against the wall at the bottom of the staircase, she could only wish for death to ease her pain.  
She rolled onto her back with a groan, her armour barely holding together. She would have laughed if she could get enough air back into her crushed lungs. Sabrian was known for being the toughest metal on Kirus, but one creature of dark magic and a staircase had been enough to break it. Pathetic. Much like how she felt. She forced her broken body to comply as she sat up, groaning and leaking, tearing at the metal that had once served to protect her but had failed the two times she had truly needed it. It didn't save her life then, and it wouldn't now.  
"So, you're awake then" came a low, gravelly voice of a man behind her. She couldn't get a good look, her back burning and splitting further as she tried to turn. She couldn't help the undignified whimpers that escaped her mouth. A dry sound like the crackling of wood underfoot that may have been a laugh of a cough emanated from behind her, "so you're the Lion of Omera. You don't look like much."  
"I don't even know what that means."

The man hummed in thought, or disbelief, but spoke no further. Cooper heaved herself onto her knees with great effort, skin splitting and blood flowing freely. Her mind was a haze, vision blurred. If she were to die, she prayed to Omera to make it quick. Slowly turning towards the voice, she let herself fall again, wheezing as her arms refused to hold her up.  
The man in front of her was barely in better shape than her. His hands were brown with dried blood, trousers were torn, and the bare flesh of his chest covered in thin slices that were barely visible in the dim lighting of the basement. His face, dirty and tired, was familiar to Cooper. Captain Godfrey Rutherford, the leader of one of the other squadrons in the Temple. She hadn't mixed with him much over the years she's spent in the Temple. Mealtimes, some times training, but never enough for a real conversation outside of barking orders or asking to pass the salt. He was a legend amongst the younger Templars, even the priest had taken a shine to him. It was said that he had killed a wyvern on his first quest at seventeen, but whether or not that was true, Cooper had no idea.  
"You're a mess" he noted, standing up on shaky legs and approaching her as she lay face down on the cold cobblestone ground, "let me tend to your wounds, you won't last down here."  
"Don't touch me" she snarled, "I can't promise what I'll do."  
"But you'll die-"  
"Then let me."  
Her words hung in the air, Rutherford paused before kneeling before her at a short distance, head bowed as if he was dealing with a rabid dog rather than the broken body before him.  
"Omeron speaks highly of you, you know" his flat voice tinged with sadness and maybe regret, "how you'll lead our Temple to greatness. That was me, once. I know how he can be. It's not an honour."  
"I never wanted this."  
"You can't uncarve stone, but you can still make something good of it. The marks that once moulded you will chip away in time, and you can start anew."  
"What does that even mean?"  
"It means that you were forced into this life, like many others, but you can still change it. If that is, you survive the night. Now, will you let me help you?"

Cooper gave a weak nod and Rutherford cautiously approached, hands shaking as he undid the straps of her armour. He carefully pulled the metal out from her skin, ripping its cloth to use as bandages, caring for her the best he could in such circumstances. She whimpered and held herself back from lashing out from the agony. Rutherford, to his credit, talked her through it, sharing anecdotes and stories from his time outside of the Temple. Cooper noted that everything he said was from his youth and barely any of the stories were from even the past decade.  
Cooper sat up against the wall, hand pressed over her stomach wound which had since stopped bleeding. Rutherford watched her with a curious gaze, his dark brown hair falling in his face. What a state they both must seem. Two Templars of Omera, covered in their own blood and stuck in what appeared to be a wine cellar in a country that was no longer theirs. Rutherford came from Northbridge in the south of Adanak and had lived through similar circumstances to Cooper.  
"What did you mean earlier," she started, pausing to wet her lips with her tongue, "when you said that you were once the one to bring our Temple to greatness?"  
Rutherford sighed, the sound rattling around in his lungs like cans in the wind. He glanced away, finding the ground far more interesting than holding eye contact.  
"They thought I was special" he shrugged, the movement causing him to wince, "all because of my so-called bloodline, but instead I got tossed aside because of my lack of magic."  
"I'm no mage either, and they haven't given up on _me_ yet."  
"Because they still have hope that you're not another red herring, that you're the descendent of Artemis Valcari. Bullshit, the lot of it. You had the right idea of running away while you still could."  
"I didn't run away" grumbled Cooper, "and I was coming back! I need to go back to Kingshill, it's my duty."  
"Then you're a bloody idiot, Cooper. Just hope that you're not the lion they think you are."  
"I'm...I can't be, I'm a nobody. My mother was a painter!"  
"And yet, the Temple took interest in you. Paid a hefty sum to get you off of your father's hands."  
Cooper stopped, considering. It _was_ true, however, her family was definitely not descended from royalty, shunned or not. The Santiagos were a proud family, but not wealthy by any means. Merchants, the lot of them, besides her mother who deviated. And yet, with their lack of making ends meet, it was her father's name that was placed upon her. The seller's mark. She had never met that side of the family, or if she had she didn't know who they were. The name meant nothing but to bind her to the Temple, and it worked.  


She wasn't sure how much time had passed, but the door to the cellar had opened only for Omeron to throw a loaf of bread down at his two captives. Cooper winced as it hit her in the chest, hard and stale. She let out a shaky breath that carried a small groan, eyes shut and head pressed against the wall as she tried to ground herself. She opened them again to find Rutherford's own staring hungrily back. The bread was torn with an ache in her shoulders, but far less than it should have, and a half was tossed at the older man that had been so kind as to not watch her die. Rutherford - Godrey, as he had insisted she called him, tore into the hard bread immediately. Cooper tried to do the same, but as the bread came up just as quick as it had hit her empty stomach, acid burning her tongue. She tossed the rest of the loaf at Godrey, who caught it with a concerned look.  
"You're not going to eat?" he asked softly, eyeing her carefully.  
Something clicked in Cooper's mind. A horrible realisation that she should have had long ago. "I don't think it's food I need."  
"Oh?"  
"Whatever happened to me in the Ironwood Forest...I don't think I'm quite human anymore."  
Somehow, the revelation did not phase Godfrey. In fact, it seemed to solidify something he had been thinking.  
"Omeron had mentioned it, I didn't think it could be true."  
" _Omeron_ knows?" she demanded, "what did he tell you?"  
"That you're blessed by our Goddess. A creature of the night."  
Of course, she found it strange that she hungered for more than food, that she lashed out in ways that resulted in death but was never present for the act. She never thought it would be like _this_. Unfortunately, it made sense. It all added up to that one conclusion. She was...a cryptling? A tick?A leech of the night?  
"Omera, what the _fuck_ " she said under her breath, "what the fuck is happening?"  
"Why did you think I was here? For fun?" he let out a humourless laugh, "they were going to make me Silent, you know. The both of us, for that matter, but of course they found something special in you, bloodline or not"  
"You were shunned" she noted, suddenly at unease. It was no small feat to become a Silent Sibling. To the outside world, they were simply priest that had taken an oath of silence far too seriously, but within the Temple, they were a warning. A warning to stay in line, a warning to watch your tongue. Not even deserters had the treatment. To be silent, was to break the law of the Temple, of Mabristan. To have your lips sewn shut, or your tongue removed, it was a lesson to the others. She quickly threw any judgement aside, she couldn't have been any better. "What did you do?"  
"It doesn't matter now. This is my punishment" he hissed, "and I think we've waited long enough."  
"But-"  
"You know Omeron isn't going to let us both leave here alive. I've made my peace with it. It's okay, Alexxyn," Godrey's chapped lips trembled into a soft smile, body relaxing into a defeated slouch. Only one could leave, and Cooper doubted that Omeron would want anyone but her. After all, he had faced the seas and scoured Adanak for her. "you're only doing what comes naturally."

Godrey offered out his arm, leaning forward slightly. Cooper swallowed hard, shifting crawling over, her muscles aching and her wounds threatening to reopen on the short notice. Bile rose again in her throat has sharp pain cut through her body, both real and the phantom that had haunted her since she had woken up in her own grave.  
She gently cupped his wrist with her teeth, steeling herself for what was to come. Doing this while awake was a different experience entirely. She shut her eyes tight and bit down into the throbbing vein.


	7. 6

The taste of blood-stained her tongue as Godfrey lay lifeless before her. Cooper stood, stronger now, hunger subsided. She knew she had to get away, for once not to flee from her crimes, instead to flee from the institute that raised her.  
A rough sob made its way past her lips, then another. Her face quickly became wet with the uncontrollable torrent, her breathing getting harder as she hiccuped. _It was never meant to go this way,_ she thought, _she was meant to have a quiet life in Syi Dorei_. As quiet as it could get for a Templar of Death itself, at least. Another chest wracking sob left her body, faster this time, faster than she could wipe the tears away. It was an undeniable fact that she wasn't human, not that she ever was, not truly, but now an uncontrollable creature that would surely hurt the people she cared for. What would Jordan think? Her wards, Rhydderch, Deryn, and Mayburn? Rachel couldn't have thought highly of her, after everything.  
She wiped her eyes, running her hands down her soaked face in an attempt to dry it to no avail. Letting out one last shaky sigh as she steeled herself to be the soldier she was raised to be. Crying wouldn't help her now. Now, she needed to escape the basement, which meant fixing herself up the best she could and finding her chosen family.  
She had modified wooden leg hastily with the metal from her armour and belted into place with the leather she could salvage. It wasn't the best fix in the world, but it held steady and supported her weight as she bounded up the stairs with a new lease of life. Her wounds hadn't healed completely but had sewn themselves enough to hold together.She tugged at the door, only for it to stay jammed with its lock. She huffed, stepping back. Of course, it had been locked, they were prisoners, not guests, yet she growled in frustration anyway. She jammed her shoulder against it, throwing her weight behind the motion. The door creaked but ultimately did not budge. She continued, ramming her weight into the wooden door until enough snapped off for her to pull at the metal lock that kept her in, sliding it across to her freedom.

The manor was dimmer now, it's grand colour lost its saturation. She could now see the holes in the wood where the woodworm had set, the cracks in the wall that almost separated the upstairs from its bottom entirely. She swallowed, trying to control her panting. Whatever beauty she had seen in the building before had left, now only leaving the chasm in which she was held against her will. She had to leave, find her friend and coworkers, and her own way back to Mabristan.

First things first, she needed to change her clothes.

She crept upstairs, in hopes of finding a bedroom, at the very least to find something to cover her bloody clothes if not replace them entirely. Not a sound carried through the manor, at least none other than herself. Hair prickled at the back of her neck. Something was wrong, but if that meant she could scavenge in peace she'd take the risk.  
She slipped seamlessly into an upstairs bedroom, grand but made smaller with the thickness of dust that inhabited every surface. Cooper sighed, thinking about the damage any clothes she'd find would be in. Still, better than the ripped, bloodstained tunic she currently wore.  
Opening the wardrobe doors with a creak, she was pleasantly surprised. The clothes are only _slightly_ damaged, at least still wearable. She pulled out a white cotton shirt and hummed. It smelled of smoke and old cedar, much like the mothballs they kept at the Academy. She poked around the rest of the wardrobe. It appeared that she had wandered into a man's room, but that didn't bother her in the slightest, it only meant adding a belt and gaining pocket space for her travels.  
In the end, she settled with black dress pants, a ruffled white shirt that's front she kept unbuttoned down to the middle of her chest, leather shoes that were a size or two larger than necessary, and a red velvet jacket that's edges had been nibbled at over the past few decades, perhaps longer. She studied herself in the mirror, scrutinizing every detail, fingering at the ring that Jordan gave her.

She had never been human enough to fit in with the others. Her ears too pricked and tall, the bridge of her nose too shaped in a cat-like way that made her stand out. Yet, she was never elven enough for the elves. Her skin too soft and malleable, irises too small and pupils too round. What she had become had pushed her further away from either species whose genetics were similar enough and yet carried seas of difference.

She sighed and scrubbed at the dried blood around her lips. It couldn't be helped now. Now, she had planning to do. She filed away any concern for her own health, focusing on the task at hand the way she had been taught by the Temple. She might not have wanted to return to them any longer, but some of their lessons could still be deemed valuable in amongst the trauma they caused. She should really seek therapy after all this is over, she noted to herself.

The stairs creaked as she crept, staying close to the wall to dampen the noise. She exhaled slowly, carefully descending to the bottom. She hadn't run into Omeron yet, or anyone else for that matter. Something was wrong, and it wasn't the fact that she was still essentially a captive.  
She finally reached the bottom, looking around. Nothing was out of place. She brushed her hand against the fabric wall in an act of grounding. Somewhere down the hall, she could hear the sound of scraping metal, as if sheathing or unsheathing a blade. She could feel her ears twitch towards the sound.  
Now, of course, she had two options. She could leave while she could, regain her freedom and continue on her path of gaining money and setting sail back to Mabristan, _or_ she could investigate with the large probability of getting captured and sent back to the basement with the corpse.  
Cooper followed the sound to a nearby room, two doors down from where she had stood. She kept her back flattened against the wall, creeping her way down. She never had any training in stealth, that had been left for the Priests. She could only hope that she was quiet enough.  
She poked her head around the corner to find Omeron lying face down on the ground, beside him a woman smoked a cigarette while reclined on one of the many settees in the room. Cooper pulled back quickly.  
"Don't be shy, come on in."

Cooper cursed under her breath. Of course, she had been caught. With her shoulders tense, she hesitantly followed her instruction.  
The woman stood before her, sword strapped to her dark jeans, white hair streaked with black was brushed back haphazardly against her skull, and a gun pointed at Cooper's face.  
"Who are you?" asked the woman, red-gold eyes that reminded Cooper of Jordan's favoured club drink squinted curiously, appraising her.  
"A servant"- lied Cooper, raising her hands to show her lack of weapons despite her pride -"nothing more. And yourself?"  
"Assassin."  
The two women stared each other down before the light-haired woman cracked a grin and lowered her gun. Cooper stepped back.  
"You killed him. Why?" she demanded, keeping her voice level as she nodded towards the corpse of the man who had caused her great pain in the past few hours. Who orchestrated how she was raised.  
"Does it matter?"  
"Of course. I need to know if I'm in any danger."  
The other woman tilted her head to one side, considering. "No, you're in no danger. You're a servant, yes? His maid?"  
"Yes" came Cooper's reply through gritted teeth.  
"Name's Val"- the white-haired woman reached a hand, to which Cooper hesitantly shook - "I'm as much an assassin as you are a maid, you have nothing to fear from me."  
"Alexxyn" came Cooper's reply, as easy as the waves reach the shore and as certain as the dawn washes away the night. She _was_ Alexxyn, after all. She had no reason to hide behind her father's surname any longer.  
"Old name" noted Val, still appraising Alexx in a way that made her feel more like a meal than a person, "haven't heard that name since..."  
Val trailed off, and Cooper didn't wait for her to finish. "You never answered. Why kill him? He was a priest."  
"What else should you do with trespassers? Deserved worse, if you ask me. Gods above I'm never getting the smell of blood out the carpet. I'll have to redecorate."  
"You need to clean the place first, the upstairs is full of dust."  
"Ah, yes, that's where you got the clothes. Keep them, I've done without them for the past few decades."  
" _Decades_?" questioned Alexx. Besides from the hair, Val didn't seem much older than she was, perhaps in her early thirties at a stretch. She waited for an answer that did not come, the two women staring at each other in bewilderment before Alexx spoke again, "were you really going to shoot me?"  
Val shrugged and opened the chamber of the gun, shaking it out into her palm to reveal that there was nothing loaded. Alexx stared at her in disbelief. Val grinned impishly at her as if life had only been a game to her, and she was winning. Alexx stepped back again, wanting to keep some distance between her and the priest killer. Although she felt some relief that he was dead, she felt no thanks towards Val despite her unlocking her freedom. It could have been different, better. Could have been more satisfying to defy the man herself. Instead, he was dead, lying in a pool of his own blood. Much like Godfrey in the room below.

"Now, my turn for questions, I think," said Val with an unattractive smirk plastered on her face. She looked so smug, Alexx would have loved to knock the look off of her face but she didn't want to risk it while Val was armed, "what brings you to my manor, Syi Dorian?"  
"Sightseeing."That was a normal person thing to do, Alexx assumed. She had never truly done it herself, but she knew plenty who did. Casper, namely. He loved gallivanting through historic ruins and climbing mountains for the views, but that was beside the point.  
"Sightseeing?" asked Val, eyebrows furrowed and eyes trying to see through her.  
"Well, yes. What else am I supposed to do? I was in the area, thought I'd stop by."  
Alexx knew she was a horrible liar, always had been. She just hoped that she was good enough for this one fib. Val huffed.  
"Alright then, keep your secrets. Just don't want any looters."  
"You _are_ fully aware that this place is for the spiders now, yes?"  
Val hummed in response, before turning and hopping over Omeron's body that had not yet been moved. She fussed about in a cabinet and pulled out a bottle of amber liquid, popping off its top and taking a long swig before holding it out for Alexx.  
"I don't drink." Cooper shrugged, yet keeping an eye on the armed woman all the while. She couldn't trust this stranger, not in the slightest. Even Finn had been easier to deal with and she was certain they had only gotten along in prison since she was the only one there he presumably knew.

 _Prison_. Finn was still a captive, much like she had been twice this month now. Yet, she had been the one free. She had to help him, somehow. She _did_ seem to have a new strength now, she could attempt to break him out. That thought stuck in the forefront of her brain. If on the slightest chance, Sir Barnaby would have her back she would take it in a heartbeat.  
With her mind made up, she turned to leave only to be stopped by a hand on her shoulder pulling her back. With a huff, she turned to glare into Val's deathly pale face. _Omera this woman looks like a corpse_. Val looked confused, pulling away and gesturing around with her bottle.  
"Where are you running off to?"  
"I need to meet some friends, you must know how it is."  
Val shrugged, "not really. Haven't had a friend in years."  
_Oh joy_ , thought Alexx tiredly, _a guilt trip_. Alexx bit her lip. She was used to the tactic and knew to avoid the topic at all costs, but the determined look on Val's face made her second guess.  
"Omera, you're just going to follow me anyway aren't you?"  
"Not if you tell me not to. It's not that I have anything better to do."  
"Well," sighed Alexx, "can't say I want to be alone again. Not sure what you're getting out of this though."  
"Consider me curious about you, Alexxyn" smiled Val, tilting her head back to look at Alexx properly, yellow eyes picking out minuscule details.  
The truth was, Alexx was curious too, not that she'd ever voice that. Val had rescued her without even trying, Alexx felt that she owed her regardless of the other woman's intentions. It didn't hurt that bringing her along meant company and a woman who knew her way around weaponry. She was a perfectly safe danger to have around.

Val busied herself with the body, rolling it in carpet ready to drag out before they left. She had pointed Alexx down the hall with a small grunt of "help yourself".  
The armoury. Alexx had almost been fed up with seeing the array of weapons and armour due to her upbringing, but even she had to admit that it came in handy now. The room was decorated in a range of queasy greens and yellows and filled wall to wall with swords and battleaxes, maces and spears. Her gaze fell on a short sword left in a glass case, a jade blade and an expertly crafted silver handle that had been made to mimic the intertwining branches of a tree, it's leaves curving into a rounded hilt. In the hilt lay an emerald, cupped between the leaves still perfectly preserved despite the wear and tear of the other weapons that filled the room to the brim. Alexx hesitantly reached out with shaking hands to open the case.  
The wood creaked with effort, its hinges squealing with disuse. The blade fit perfectly in Alexx's hands, it's blade humming a faint green glow at her touch.  
_Magic_. It's not something that Alexx had much experience with. Of course, she knew mages and other magic users, was even raised around many in the Temple, but their histories were lost to time. She had never even held a magic item before, that honour was left for those with magical traits. It felt as if she had crossed a line that should have never been crossed, but she wasn't a Templar anymore. She could make her own rules and live under her own conditions, and this was the first step of many to defy the temple.  
"I see you've found something" noted Val from behind her, although she didn't turn to look at her new companion. "Interesting choice."  
Alexx hummed in response, gaze transfixed on the blade. It was definitely far nicer than the blades she was issued from either temple or academy. Looking further, the branches looked closer to grapevines than branches, it's grapes forming a hardened grip.  
"Alexxyn," sighed Val, "we have to leave before the place burns down, you got what you want?"  
Alexx whirled around, looking at Val incredulously, "what? What the hell did you do?"  
"Best way to get rid of the evidence, I'm not overly attached to the place-" she shrugged, "-now, you coming?"  
"Why are you like this?" asked Alexx, although it came out more of a whisper. Val shot her a mischievous grin and left the room. With the smell of smoke slowly filling her lungs, she felt no choice but to follow, taking the sword with her.

The flames had risen to lick at the sky, taunting at the Gods til they opened the oceans of the City of Glass above them. The rain poured down in thick, freezing pellets, soaking their clothes instantaneously. The two stood back as they watched the flames grow and spread, painting their faces with orange light. Val ripped off her brown leather jacket, tossing it to the ground as she raised her arms triumphantly above her head, letting out a loud whoop. She turned excitedly to Alexx, a wide grin revealing two upper sets of canines that matched Alexx's own, a rare deformity that she had only seen in her twin before their separation.  
"What are you? A stuck up?" yelled Val above the growing thunder, "let loose!"  
Alexx watched as Val ripped off the red bandana from her neck, it finding itself with her jacket leaving her in a white t-shirt, jeans and knee-length boots.  
Lightning cracked in the near distance, lighting up the ink-black sky in flashes of white.  
"Sure know how to make an introduction," Alexx rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but crack a smile at Val's antics.  
Val whooped again, grinning and laughing as she made movements that might pass as dancing. The flames dying behind her, the smoke thick and low. The storm showed no sign of letting up, water cascading down Alexx's face rapidly to the point that she could barely keep her eyes open. She pulled her jacket off and held it above her hair like an umbrella, not that it would keep her dry at this point, in hopes that she could keep her sight on Val and the dying embers behind her.

The smoke seemed to follow them the way back to Ridgewood. It had taken until nightfall to return to the city on foot, their shoes full of wet dirt and stone. Their clothes were like a second skin, water forcing them to cling to their quaking bodies.  
Alexx gripped the sword in her hands - it was one thing Val was adamant in avoiding answering questions about. The sword felt special, somehow, as if it were a living being. Magic coursed through its metal veins, and it's blade still lit with its soft green glow. A fresh green, a promise of growth unlike the sickening tones of the room that was no more than a blackened husk of its former self.  
The sight of the Sherriff's building was an unwelcome necessity. Now that they had arrived, Alexx could feel her stomach churn, her nerves set alight with worry.  
"Ah, meeting friends at a jail, that's normal," Val's voice finally broke their silence. Alexx rolled her eyes at the tone, choosing not to humour her. Val elbowed her, a little too rough to be playful, but the grin on her face seemed to suggest that it was. "Could have told me we were pissing off the lawmen, would have dressed for the occasion."  
"We're here for my _colleague_ who's only in jail because of me."  
"Ooh, whatcha do?"  
"Nothing to concern yourself with."

Alexx hadn't had a good look at the place the last time she was here. It was in the same style as the other buildings, in a dark purple with an outline that looked like it may have once been gold but had faded to a dull beige-yellow of its undercoat. A stout building, only slightly taller than the Frostbeard's residence. Steeling herself, she reached for the door handle -  
"Cooper?"  
Alexx snapped her hand back and whirled around. There behind her stood a bewildered Rachel Godrick, heavy bags under her eyes and rumpled, torn clothes.  
"How did you get out? Who's this?" she asked, her dark brown eyes darting warily between Alexx and Val. "Cooper, I swear -"  
"Don't worry about it!" Alexx's voice gave out a few octaves higher than it was originally, "This is Val, we're here for Finn."  
Rachel glanced at Val suspiciously, not that Alexx could blame her, but ultimately ignored the woman. Val took this as a chance to ask the important question that Alexx felt she should have planned before arriving in the city, let alone until she was at the station.  
"So, how we breaking him out?"  
Rachel and Alexx exchanged a look.  
"Well-"  
"I-"  
The two women spoke over each other, Alexx gesturing with her hands in a similar way to Rachel as an attempt to show she knows what she's saying.  
"Look, I knew what I was doing _before_ you two showed up," explained Rachel, "you've gone and thrown a spanner into the works."  
"Oh yeah?" challenged Val with glee.  
"Yeah, actually."  
"Hey, maybe we talk this through-" Alexx cut across, shifting to be closer to Rachel, "-we're all here for the same reason, yeah? We can figure out a plan."  
"I mean, I'm just following you," shrugged Val.  
Rachel crossed her arms, keeping her metal prosthetic on display and cocking an eyebrow as she regarded Val.

After much persuading from the ex-Templar, the three found themselves in a café further down the road. Rachel sat next to Alexx, just so she could keep an eye on the newcomer, not that Val seemed to notice or mind.  
"You can't be serious," said Val with a bewildered look, "you can't seriously have been thinking of marching in there and waving your name around."  
"The Godrick name carries a lot of weight-"  
"So what? You don't see me throw around my damn name!"  
"Which is-?"  
"Don't see why it concerns you."  
Rachel glared, leaning back in her chair and giving Alexx a look of ' _why did you bring her?_ ', to which Alexx replied with pressing her lips into a thin line, attempting to seem polite.  
Sir Barnaby had been missing from their group, Alexx had noted. He had been there when she and Finn had gotten arrested, but hadn't seemed to have followed Rachel in getting him back. Maybe they had just been the hired help after all, despite the crew getting along decently well with him. She wasn't close to the man in any means, but his absence felt strange. Rachel had explained briefly that the old faun had wanted to carry on with his research, that he had made a breakthrough that he really should have had before dragging his mercenaries across Adanak, only to find that the relic he sought out wasn't even in Adanak - instead in North Akeldama where his journey began.  
"We can't just walk in the front door," offered Alexx, hoping to change the topic back to getting Finn out of jail.  
"Is there another door then?" questioned Rachel, pointedly not looking at Val, "Coop, you were there, did you see another way in?"  
"Uh, not _exactly_ but -"  
"Well! Front door it is."  
"I mean, not _necessarily-_ " Val cut in, leaning forward with her elbows on the table, "could always...make a new entrance."  
"Absolutely not, perish."  
"You didn't even know what I was going to suggest!"  
"Something illegal, I'm sure," huffed Rachel.  
"Ah yes, because a prison break isn't illegal."

Alexx groaned and let her head drop against the table with a soft _thunk_. The other two continued bickering with her mental absence, only Rachel pulling back to check on her every once in a while with a hand pressed softly on her shoulder and flashing concerned looks at her unmoving form.  
"Fine, we do things Rachel's way - she throws her name at the guards, me and Alexxyn break your boy out" blurted out Val, fingers drumming quickly against the table. Alexx sat back and watched her reactions.  
"It's not a bad idea,"Rachel shrugged, "it's not like we have anything better."  
"Well, now that you're finally sorted," started Alexx, "when do we do this?"


	8. 7

"I'm sure this will come as a shock, but I've never done this before," Val seethed as she worked a hairpin into the lock. Her hair plastered to her forehead, face redder than it had been ten minutes ago. She growled as the pin snapped, quickly jamming her last one in.  
"Hey, maybe be less rough?Just a suggestion."  
"Get bent, Alexxyn."  
The plan was simple. At least, it was supposed to be.  
Rachel had successfully lured the Sheriff away to his office, letting Alexx and Val sneak through the wood covered halls in search of the entrance to the lower level. Which, of course, it was locked. Alexx wasn't sure how that didn't factor into their planning.  
Val bared her teeth, like a snarling animal trying to break free from its confines rather than the woman attempting to break _into_ them. Alexx took another look down the corridor, luckily finding the Sherriff behind the cloudy glass of his office, the only guard upstairs with his back turned.  
"Can you hurry this up, please?" asked Alexx in a hushed yell, barely keeping her voice from carrying down the hall.  
"Would _you_ like a go?"  
"No."  
"Then fuck off."

Alexx huffed and left her to it, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall. She wanted this done with. The quicker they could get Finn out of his cell, the quicker she could find Sir Barnaby and get back in his good graces. She _had_ to complete the job, had to go home. This was her only chance.  
The guard turned, presumably for a replacement for the evening shift. Alexx was quite aware of how it worked, with a lot of her life taken up by guard duty and patrols around the city. She tugged Val into a nearby room, pressing her against the wall when she wriggled in annoyance with a hand clamped over her mouth. Val glared, eyes filled with fire until she seemed to realise what was happening. She rolled her orange-gold eyes and pushed Alexx away, smirking up at her.  
"You're stronger than you look" she chuckled.  
"Are you calling me small?" asked Alexx, raising an eyebrow, gesturing at herself wildly with a deep-set look of confusion. She hadn't lost _that_ much muscle in her time away from Syi Dorei, had she? She hadn't trained every day for the majority of her life to be called 'small'.  
Val shrugged, ignoring her to poke her head around the door. "The coast is clear, let's go."  
Alexx followed her reluctantly, keeping watch as Val returned to picking the lock. This time around the door let out a soft click, Alexx whipping her head around to Val who crouched with a smug expression. The door opened slowly, Alexx grabbing it to stop it from opening too far, remembering the sound of the door hitting the wall that reverberated when she was locked in her cell. Val nodded her head to one side, a gesture of 'you first'. Alexx steeled herself and reentered where she was captive for so long.

It hadn't changed, although Alexx wasn't sure what she had been expecting. The moss still grew down the walls, looking sickly in the torchlight, the air still froze her skin. She sighed and grabbed a torch from the wall, closing the door carefully behind Val, not trusting her to do so herself. Val led them down, brandishing a knife that she pulled out of her boots. It only made Alexx wonder where _else_ she was concealing weapons. They stopped at the bottom, Alexx almost bumping into the white-haired woman.  
Val ran her fingers through a thin groove in the wall, a faraway look in her eyes. Her eyebrows knitted together as she traced the line. Alexx huffed.  
"We don't have all day, the guards will find us at any moment-" she snapped, causing Val to snap out of whatever haze she was in.  
"Right, yes. Of course," she nodded, stepping back, "there's just a lot of history here, it's...captivating."  
"Let's just get Finn free."  
"Right-o. Lead on."

The guards patrolled the long row of cells, more than Alexx had seen when she was a prisoner. They weren't overly armoured, at least not by the standards she was used to, but leather armour was still far more than she had on. Val twitched anxiously beside her, full of barely restrained energy.  
They watched as the guards split from their mostly aimless routes - the prisoners too weak to escape if they tried. Alexx ducked further into the shadows, crouching. She went to pull Val back with her but she slipped from her grasps.  
"Val, no-" started the ex-Templar, going to grab at the woman but missing by an inch. Pain shot through parts no longer there, keeping her in place as Val snuck up on the guard and wrapped a strong arm around his throat. She winced, fighting through the pain to stand, but Val kept a tight hold on the man. "stop, this isn't the plan!"  
Val seemed to notice her then, dropping the limp body of the guard to the ground with a _thud_. The second guard turned to the sound, drawing his small crossbow from his side and aiming it at Val.  
"Oh come on, it's not like he's dead" scoffed Val, throwing her arms up in exclamation.  
"He isn't?" asked Alexx through gritted teeth, holding her hands out to show that she's unarmed.  
"Eh, does it matter?"  
"Of course it _fucking_ matters!"

The guard, to his credit, ignored their squabbling as he slowly approached them with his crossbow still pointed at Val. He didn't seem to view Alexx as a threat, barely even giving her a second glance. Alexx was preparing to jump the man when the door swung open, the bolt from the crossbow flying wide.  
Rachel stood at the top of the staircase, watching over the frozen scene. Alexx gave her a thumbs up and a nervous smile. This was _not_ the plan. The guard unfroze first, pulling out another bolt to load his bow, only to be stopped by a rock pinging off his head from the top stair. Val took his brief hesitation as an opening to attack, her thin frame lunging forward.  
Alexx winced as a knife was plunged through the man's collarbone, the bone making a horrible wet cracking noise. She was rooted to the spot, a part of her wanting to rush to the guard and see if he could be saved, the other wanting to run away in case it triggered anything within her, the hunger she had yet to control. She turned to leave, only to bump into Rachel, who steadied her without a second glance, her gaze locked on Val. The woman in question stood, wiping the blood off her face with a smug expression.  
"There. Sorted," her voice came out huskier than it was before, a few octaves lower, "oh hey, you're back! Did you kill off the Sherriff?"  
"I knocked him out," said Rachel, voice low and calmer than Alexx felt, "couldn't stand talking to that pig."  
"Are you not going to yell at me about the-" Val waved her hand vaguely in the direction of the bodies, "- _situation_?"  
"Regretfully I'm military, I'd be a hypocrite." Rachel glanced at Alexx, who looked away in guilt.  
Val looked impressed, holding out a fist to Rachel who bumped it with her own hesitantly. Alexx rolled her eyes.  
"We need to get moving," she said, turning to walk down the rows of cells. With the two guards dead, it would make this part far easier on them, but the outcome far harder. She didn't want to be arrested for murder, not again.

The cells didn't seem nearly as claustrophobic on the outside. It was only a small mercy as the wailing had never stopped, and was now paired with lechers grinning behind their bars having witnessed to fall of both guards. Skeletal hands snaked their way out to grab at them, some almost succeeding only to be swiped away.  
Finn's cell sat in the middle of the aisle, further back than Alexx remembered although she had been out of it the last time she was here. Finn himself sat huddled in the corner, his pale skin a sickly blue-purple shade. Rachel let out a shaky breath.  
"Finn?" she asked softly, leaning up against the bars, "you still with us?"  
Finn let out a soft groan, slowly untangling his limbs with a hiss. Alexx's heart dropped when she finally met his eyes. He was thin - dangerously so, face gaunt and grey, his eyes glassy and unfocused. His hair fell in strings, glistening with oil.  
"You shouldn't be here" he rasped, his voice barely there, "it's too dangerous" - he was cut off by a fit of chest-rattling coughs - "she's coming-"  
"Who's coming?" asked Rachel, voice still soft yet full of urgency, "Finn? What's going on?"  
"They've been disappearing for days, the prisoners they're...they're being taken to Akeldama," Finn fought to get the words out tumbling over each as he forced his rusty vocal cords to do his bidding, body trembling.  
"It's alright Finn, we'll get you out-"  
Finn shook his head with a whimper. He crouched back into the corner, avoiding their gaze. Val eyed Finn curiously as if he were but a specimen in a jar waiting to be poked and prodded, or a divine meal she had yet to try. Alexx wasn't sure which of those options was worse.  
With a sharp breath after a long silence, Finn finally spoke again. "The Mother, she's returned," he said with his voice low and crackling like the fire he possessed within. He stared up at them with his lake blue eyes, taking in their expressions - or lack thereof.  
"Who's the Mother?" asked Alexx, crouching so she could meet him eye to eye, eyebrows scrunched and questioning.

"They say she's Artemis. Artemis Valcari."

The newly reunited group had no choice but to return to the Frostbeard residence. Finn needed to heal, and none of the three women wanted to carry him outside of the city. Braxton kept Alexx at a wide berth, which was fine by her - it's not as if she _wanted_ to be friendly with the man that got her and Finn arrested in the first place.  
Ellys had greeted them at the door and helped prepare a bed for the Hawthorne man, and now sat before them in what could pass as a living room. She took a sip of her ale and scratched her beard, deep in thought.  
"He said _what_?" she asked, leaning close enough that Alexx could see the remaining froth on the dwarven woman's thick beard.  
"That Artemis not only lives but is kidnapping prisoners," Rachel seemed deep in thought herself. This was, after all, why she came to Adanak in the first place, and to find that the subject of her personal quest was possibly alive? Must have thrown a spanner in her plans. "Which is, of course, impossible. She'd be _four hundred_ years old."  
"Elves," interjected Val in a deadpan tone, "the Valcaris had elven bloodline, I mean, what _else_ would it be?"  
Ellys nudged Alexx with her half-empty tankard, prompting her to add to the conversation since she had been quiet since entering the establishment. "Cooper? You got any ideas?"  
"Night creatures," she blurted out without second thought. Val sat forward, eyeing her curiously and gesturing for her to go on, "could that be possible?"  
"What kinda night creatures?"  
"Something-" Alexx sighed, rubbing at each ball in her knuckle as she averted their gaze, "- something we haven't seen before."  
"That's a mighty big net you've cast there," whistled Ellys before she downed the rest of her ale.  
"No matter why or even _if_ she lives, I _need_ to find out what happened to Alice," Rachel stood hastily, running her hands down her face as she began to pace.

The name seemed to have struck a chord with Val, who froze momentarily before sipping at her drink. Whatever had come over her had vanished in an instant, and became the charismatic, dangerous woman that held Alexx at gunpoint not so long ago. This concerned Alexx greatly, but she didn't comment, instead choosing to watch her friend wear a track through the carpet.  
A silence fell over them, and after five minutes of eternity, Alexx had had enough. She stood, carefully stopping Rachel from her pacing, holding her hand and her gaze. Rachel stared at her in confusion but didn't pull away, relaxing her shoulders and resting her forehead against Alexx's with a sigh. After a minute they both pulled away, Rachel seeming far more at ease than she had moments prior.  
"Barnaby's gonna want to hear about this," she said, voice hitting a commanding register, "he might want to back out, it was supposed to be a straightforward search quest, not thieving from a woman who's supposed to be dead."  
"Aye, about that," Ellys trailed off, looking at Rachel apologetically, "he hasn't been back today. Not to alarm you, or anything, but I sort of assumed...that you knew?"  
"Where did he go? Did he say?" it was Alexx's turn on the commanding aura, pushing past Rachel to tower over the ginger assassin.  
Ellys only rolled her eyes at Alexx's display, " okay first off, you need to back off, secondly, he wanted to check out some building not far from here, which is pretty normal for him! The thing is, we've been hearing reports that that building got burned down all afternoon."  
Alexx turned to glare at Val who grinned nervously. The ex-Templar sighed and nodded slowly.  
"The old manor, right?" she said, voice unnaturally calm, sounding foreign even to her own ears.  
"The Valcari Manor, yeah."  
"Of course those bastards crop up again," sighed Rachel, tired and weary, "wait, how did you know that _that_ was the building that got burned?"  
Val rolled her eyes with a small smile, "it's a coincidence, right? No need to get worked up over it."  
Rachel sighed, seemingly unable to find the energy to be annoyed.  
"Alright, whatever," she sighed again, long and heavy as if her very soul had escaped, "I'm gonna head up, get some rest."  
"I'll come with," said Alexx, looking over Rachel with a concerned gaze, "need to be at our best to find Barnaby, yeah?"  
Val rolled her eyes but ushered them away with one hand, sinking deeper into the couch and sipping at her silver flask.

Their new room was as cramped as their last. It was a mercy that only Rachel and Alexx were staying there, as Val had found accommodations elsewhere that suited her "needs" far better than the crime den.  
Alexx and Rachel huddled close together on the bed that barely passed as a double, shoulders pressed together as Rachel stared forlornly at the ceiling. Alexx watched her with knitted eyebrows, letting her hand drift down between them to squeeze her friends. Rachel cracked a small smile before it was lost to a shaky breath. She didn't pull her hand away, intertwining their fingers. Warm skin and sweaty palms pressed together.  
"She ruined my family," said Rachel softly after the silence that had fallen over them, "Artemis, I mean. She fucked my family up for generations, it took my grandfather to renew our businesses and reclaim our name. All because of what happened to Alice."  
"And if she's alive-" Alexx trailed off, running her thumb over her friend's own. Alexx hoped she wasn't, Godfrey's words weighing on her. She didn't want to answer that question about herself, not yet. Whether she was or wasn't Valcari blood didn't matter, she didn't want it.  
"I don't know what I'd do if I met her, nothing good probably."  
Rachel shook her head and rolled over to face Alexx. Her dark eyes weighed down and weary, lips pressed tightly together as if that was the only thing holding her together, and furrowed eyebrows. Alexx pulled the other woman to her in a tight hug, Rachel's head resting on her collarbone and arms wrapped tight around each other's torsos. They lay unspeaking, only their breathing breaking through the silence for several minutes, letting each other bask in the much-needed comfort.  
Rachel broke what quiet they had with a laugh, loud and exhausted, shocking a stunned chuckle from Alexx.  
"What?" asked Alexx with a confused grin painting her face, eyebrow raised and eyes searching.  
"Remember when we first met?" asked Rachel in return, looking up the best she could from their tight embrace. "I thought you were such a stuck up prick."  
Alexx rolled her eyes, "and now?"  
"Eh, I still think you're stuck up, but you're open now. Mostly."  
Alexx leaned her head back into the stiff pillow as she laughed, shoving Rachel playfully. Rachel muttered something that sounded a lot like 'prat' into Alexx's shoulder, the two continuing to playfully fight as they had many times in the Academy when neither could sleep.  
A sharp knock on the door caused them to stop in their tracks, pausing their actions entirely.  
"Keep it down you two, take it to the hotel if you're gonna do that," grumbled the voice that could only be Braxton Frostbeard himself.  
"Sorry!" Alexx yelled the apology back, only to get laughed at by Rachel again before the two settled down. Rachel returned to lie in Alexx's arms, to which Alexx was thankful as she wasn't aware of how much she missed physical contact.

"Hey Rachel?" asked Alexx after a long period of silence, Rachel who lay half-asleep on her chest hummed in response, Godfrey's words swirling in her head yet again. She didn't have the heart to tell Rachel yet, out of kindness or cowardice she wasn't sure. "Y'know whatever happens, if Artemis is alive or if she isn't, it doesn't matter. I got your back."  
Rachel nodded, muttering thanks as she fiddled with the cord around Cooper's neck. The action caused her to open her eyes once more, "Coop? What the hell?"  
"Hmm?" hummed Alexx, drifting off in the fashion that only a sleepover could bring, "what?"  
"A ring?"  
"Oh."  
"When were you going to tell me?"  
"When I wasn't in danger of being arrested."  
"Alright, fair enough." snickered Rachel.  
"Now go the fuck to sleep" grinned Alexx, already closing her eyes again.

The morning came swiftly, but Val works faster. The door to their bedroom was flung open, revealing an unruly Val, wide-eyed under her aviator glasses.  
Alexx shot up, tossing off a grumbling Rachel in the process.  
"Val?What the hell-?" started Alexx before Val cut her off.  
"Got a note, your Barnaby-guy's been taken."  
That got Rachel's attention. She swiftly sat up, leaning towards to feral white-haired woman in the doorway, "taken? where?"  
"To Akeldama," she panted. She must have run from the hotel down the road. She came closer, handing Alexx a note which she passed to Rachel due to her own borderline illiteracy, "take a look."  
"To the Mother in the," - Rachel squinted at the rough scrawl, handwriting worse than Alexx's own,-"Sanguine Peaks?"  
"That's North Akeldama, they couldn't have gotten there already, that's weeks away on foot," frowned Alexx, "we can probably catch up, easy."  
"Finn's gonna want to hear about this."  
"Then we'll tell him as soon as he's up, he can rest on the road."  
Val sat on the end of the bed, watching them curiously, "so we're going?"  
"I don't really have a choice," shrugged Alexx, "I need the money to go home."  
"That's it then," nodded Rachel, getting out of bed with a stretch, "we're headed to Akeldama."


	9. 8

It relieved Alexx to leave the Frostbeard residence. The unwelcome feeling crawled under her skin, much like the bugs that ate at her injuries months prior. She breathed in the clean country air, leaving a longing for the city life they had used her to from her years in Kingshill.  
The countryside that encapsulated the area surrounding Ridgewood had been a pleasant change in colour, lush greens and multicoloured flowers grew across a backdrop of gold from the nearby farmlands. The openness was uncomfortable to Alexx, as she kept her sword in hand at all times, despite Rachel's teasing.  
Finn walked behind them, barely awake and feet dragging through the thick grass. He had looked slightly better that morning than he had in the cell, although his weariness was deeper than a night's rest could heal. He had shaved his head during the night or early morning. His one long scraggly mop now a thin red fuzz. It aged him, somehow, reminding Alexx of the radicals at the Academy who joined, ready to die.  
Every so often Alexx would look back to make sure he was still there, to which he'd reply with a forced smile and a thumbs up. To his annoyance, Val had kept him company for the trip, prodding him with questions about Artemis with sick glee.  
" _Omera_ , give him a break," groaned Alexx, turning her head to shoot her a glare. Val rolled her eyes but bounded forward to walk beside Rachel, who sighed in annoyance.  
"Stop for camp, anyone?" asked Rachel, looking at Alexx with a pleading expression. Alexx wasn't sure when she became the leader of their group, the title weighed on her. She hadn't been in charge of anything since she had been fourteen, and even then she had left Mycah to take over after she joined the Temple a few years after.

It took them two months to reach the coastal town of Northbridge, South Adanak on foot.  
Alexx was sure they would have arrived there sooner if it hadn't been for Finn needing more sleep than the rest of them to get back in order. Still, it couldn't be helped, and he had still proven useful.  
The town, as its name would suggest, had been established across two halves of land connected by a large stone bridge. The North section of its town held grand, white buildings decorated with gold ornamentations. Its elegant stone path led from the bridge to an even larger building that may have been its Governor's House. The South, from what Alexx could see over the gleaming white, was beige and brown. There were patched mossy tile roofs with ragged quilts, windows blacked out with newspapers. It's fishbone paths, and to call them paths would be generous, led from home to building, shack to shack. The air was fresh with the scent of salt, the sounds from the ocean birds flocking on rooftops. Boats bobbed on the waves, carrying back their loads of fish for their livelihoods.  
It was much like Kingshill, Alexx realised, although on a far more obvious scale because of its smaller size. She was fortunate, really, to have been raised in the principal part of the city where it was well kept and well funded. She hadn't thought about it much over the years, but it was true. It was an easy fact to forget when you're raised to see those on the lower end as enemies, even with her low birth.  
The people of money gave them a wide berth, sneaking glances and speaking in hushed whispers. Alexx subconsciously rubbed at the black brand that was seared into her wrist. They didn't belong here. Besides her, Rachel shuffled uncomfortably, eyes darting from one onlooker to the next while Val glared back, lips pulled back into a snarl. Finn used his brittle body to shield the women as he carted them further to the south, mainly to stop Val from inevitably starting a fight.  
The lower end of the town hadn't been much better. Those who hadn't ignored them cowered and fled. Both sides of the town reminded Alexx of her last victim. Godfrey. This had been his birthplace, once he'd never return to because of her. Because of _Omeron_. If he had family left here, she promised herself that she'd tell them of his fate. If she had time, that was. Ultimately, finding Barnaby _had_ to be her top priority.

She took a deep breath before she split from her group. She may have been uncomfortable with the staring, but the need to finally see Jordan again overshadowed everything else.  
"Excuse me, ma'am?" she asked an old woman whose body was covered head to toe in rough grey rags, only her face poking through. Despite the layers she shivered, teeth chattering together as her eyes darted like a prey animal. "Ma'am? Have you seen a faun around these parts?"  
Her eyes finally latched onto Alexx, unfocused and dull. "Faun? Why? There are many fauns here."  
"I'm looking for a specific one, his name is Barnaby and he may have passed through against his will," said Alexx calmly, trying to keep her voice soft to the sharp voiced woman. "He wears _really_ ugly clothes, you couldn't miss him if you tried. Perhaps you can help me?"  
"No!" the old woman shrieked, folding in on herself, "can't help! _Won't!"  
"Alright,_ well, thanks for your time, ma'am."

Alexx returned to the group, shrugging apologetically. She couldn't say she didn't try, at least. Val took a long drink from her hip flask before holding it out to Alexx who declined her with a wave.  
"So, people don't like us here, huh?" she said, face filled with a mix of concern and confusion. "God, we're never going to catch up to Barnaby at this point."  
"We're _going_ to find him," huffed Finn, "we have to. I owe my life to that man."  
" _Okay_ , we're going to find him, just maybe not here."  
"We've barely been here ten minutes, I'm not giving up."  
Alexx let out a breath and nodded, "we'll keep looking. I promise."

They wandered around the lower section of the town, attempting to talk to the citizens who gave very little information or outright hid. Val had wandered off alone at some point during the day, her absence only marked by her sudden silence, and was both a relief and a perturbation. _At least she won't be getting in the way,_ Alexx figured, trusting that Val would return if and when she wanted to, much like a stray cat. Taking Val's lead, they split up and spread to opposite corners of the town, Alexx staying in the lower half where Val presumably still lurked, while Finn and Rachel steeled themselves and took tot he upper side.  
Alexx had taken to knocking on houses and businesses alike, as the streets became more and more lifeless. Each time she was ignored or had doors slammed in her face. Disheartened, she turned to join Finn and Rachel in the upper half, only to find a masked person strolling towards her. They dressed in dark leathers and denim, belts overlapping over their chest, a red neckerchief tied around their throat. Their face was hidden by a black valved half-mask, thick reflective glasses, darkened by the shadow from their wide-brimmed leather hat. They took their time to reach Alexx, who turned to face the mystery figure, body tense and fingers drumming over the hilt of her sword. Her blade would be effectively useless if the stranger deemed fit to use the gun strapped to their back, but she would never go down without a fight.

The stranger held their hands out in a calming gesture as if Alexx was a wild animal. "Woah there," they said, their voice muffled yet unmistakably female, the filtered valves on their mask emitting a soft white light with each word. "Easy now, you an' your friends are causing quite the stir."  
"Just passing through," she said through gritted teeth, "we'll be out of your hair in no time."  
"Heard you're looking for someone?" asked the woman. Alexx stiffly nodded, not removing her hand from the hilt of her blade. "I might know someone who can help, for a _price_ of course."  
"I don't have any money."  
"Oh, it's not money I'm after."  
" _Well,_ I think you're barking up the wrong tree there."  
"Easy there, pal. That's not at all what I'm asking," laughed the stranger, "look, the name's De Silva, my boss...knows things. Lots of things."  
Alexx considered De Silva's words. They _did_ need information, and if she was sure her boss could share something on Alexx's? Might be worth it.

"Let me talk to the group."

" _Gods_ , Alexx, can you please stop picking up strays?" groaned Rachel, head in her hands.  
"We're not keeping her! She just knows someone who might help!" argued Alexx, voice pitched with desperation.  
"In fairness, she's better than Val already," shrugged Finn, who was almost immediately punched by the woman in question, "-hey! Tell me I'm wrong, what _do_ you add to the team?"  
Val pressed her lips together, eyebrows scrunched as she thought.  
"Alright, knock it off, we have a lead," Alexx cut across.  
"And what if she turns on us?" asked Rachel, still unconvinced.  
"I mean, there's four of us and one of her," Alexx said with a shrug, "plus Finn has fire magic, and Val's feral."  
" _Alright,_ let's meet your new friend."

De Silva waited by the fishmonger that was still closed due to their presence. She regarded the group with a cool demeanour, the sun glinting off of her glasses. Despite not being able to see her eyes, Alexx felt the uncomfortable feeling of being judged. De Silva popped forward from where she leaned against the fishmonger's wall, sauntering towards them in a way that seemed unnatural, mechanical almost.  
"You ready?" she asked, her mask once again lighting with each spoken word. Alexx looked back to her group, before turning and nodding at De Silva. "Let's head out then."  
"Where are you taking us?" asked Alexx.  
"Not too far, about half a mile from town."  
Alexx didn't feel comfortable with trusting the woman but felt as if she had no other choice. She gestured for De Silva to lead the way, content with not leading for what might have been the first time since joining the crew.

As they left the town the townspeople started to reenter the streets, slowly at first but the further they got from the town, the more people that flooded the streets. A strange town.  
They entered the wiry grasslands that surrounded the town, sand kicking under their feet. Houses were far more sparse out here, and more akin to huts entirely made of weathered wooden planks. The people seemed less afraid, some offering a wave in their direction. Alexx got the feeling that they were not used to outsiders, as the townsfolk watched them with curious eyes as they passed through their territory.

Soon enough, they caught sight of a lone brick cabin, entirely worse for wear. Its slate roofing was missing parts, others cracked and threatening to fall. Bricks poked out of its circular walls as if they had been ejected. Alexx groaned.  
"Oh, that doesn't look safe."  
"It's not, really," shrugged De Silva, "its held up well though."  
"I think we have differing opinions of 'well'," muttered Rachel.  
De Silva either didn't hear her or chose to ignore her comment. Either could be possible. She instead pushed open the wooden door with a long _creak_ that sent shiver's down Cooper's spine.  
"Myrtle? You home?" she called out, slowly entering the cabin.  
Cautiously, Alexx followed, leading the others in. De Silva continued calling out, wandering to a staircase in the back of the reasonably sized room. Dried herbs hung from the ceiling, along with large legs of various meats. A large pot hung over a roaring fire in the fireplace in the side of the room, its smell wafting and mingling with the fresh-baked bread left on the counter. Someone's stomach growled, but Alexx wasn't sure if it was her's or one of the other's.  
"Myrtle?" De Silva called out again.  
"Down here!" yelled back a man's voice from the room below. De Silva gestured for the group to follow her as she descended the stairs.

The steps creaked as they declined, barely holding their weight as they bent and groaned. More brick walls welcomed them, sticky with damp. The walls that weren't filled with books were filled with sack dolls of different colours and varying damage. The homely feeling of the upstairs had left them, only the feeling of dread remains.  
"Maddie? When did you get back?" asked De Silva as she reached the bottom, crossing the room to stand in front of a young elven man who looked strangely familiar to Alexx, yet she couldn't place his face. The rest of the group hung back by the staircase, watching the pair with confusion as an old woman busied herself by a large bookshelf.  
"This morning," the man replied, not looking up as he flicked through the pages of a thick book, "you would know if you bothered to return, Ruairi."  
" _Amadeus,_ " warned the old woman, returning from the bookshelf with a pile of books that she slammed onto the table, "Ruairi, who are your friends?"  
"They need your wisdom."

The old woman, Myrtle presumably, scanned her gaze over the crew, Alexx fighting the need to shuffle uncomfortably. She stared into Alexx's eyes for a while longer before humming.  
"Your eyes don't match, love."  
"It's glass-"  
"I can fix that for you if you'd like."  
"Oh, no, that's fine," stuttered Alexx, falling over her words, "thank you though."  
"Suit yourself," tutted Myrtle, turning back to her book covered table, picking up the nearest hardback and flicking through it.  
"Actually ma'am, we could use your help on something," Alexx interjected, "if you can, that is."  
"Oh, I know all about your missing master."  
"That's good - _wait_ , you know about Sir Barnaby?"  
"Of course, I see everything."

Alexx went to say something, but she wasn't sure what. Her mouth flapped uselessly as she tried to generate a thought. Giving up, she turned to look at her companions, wide-eyed in a look of sheer ' _you heard that too, right?'._ Myrtle finally looked back at them with a huff, storming over to her collection of dolls.  
"You, Alexxyn Santiago," she pointed at Alexx before pulling a doll off of the shelf, placing it on the table before the group. The doll was made out of a light brown material similar to burlap, with two big brown buttons sewn in for the eyes and a thin pink thread crisscrossing its body like small lightning strikes. Alexx noted that it was missing a leg, stuffing sticking out from the hole it left, it's hair made of thick black felt. "You're a bastard, your father sold you to the Temples because he couldn't let you ruin his reputation. You died, and yet, you're still here."  
Alexx froze. It wasn't something she ever planned on telling her friends. She was sure that they had suspected something, anything, but she'd never planned on confirming anything. She refused to look back at their faces.  
Myrtle cut through Alexx's thoughts by dropping another onto the table, this time a darker brown base, with the same brown buttons. One hand missing, fluff falling out of the hole it left. Myrtle pointed a bony finger at Rachel, "Rachel Godrick, the eldest werewolf child cast aside by her father, you rebelled by starting your own pack, and yet you're here and not with your family."  
"Alexx _is_ my family," growled Rachel, crossing her arms. Myrtle tutted at her before moving on.  
"Finn...Hawthorne," muttered the old woman, as she searched her shelves, "ah, here."  
She unceremoniously dropped another sack doll onto the table, this time pale and like Alexx's, had one button eye in a blue so light it may as well have been white. "Finn, a man raised by the man you're all searching for. You're a little far from your tribe, are you not?"  
Finn huffed but said nothing. Alexx put a hand on his shoulder in what she hoped was a comforting gesture.  
"And finally, you-"  
"That's fine, actually," said Val, cutting across quickly, "I think we get the point."  
"What?" asked Rachel, more lighthearted than she had been barely a minute ago, but it may have been easier to ignore what Myrtle had said, "You don't want to be subjected to whatever the hell this is?"  
"What can I say? I have an embarrassing middle name," shrugged Val with a grin.  
Alexx wasn't sure what to do. On the one hand, Myrtle could have been spying on them, on the other, the information was far too specific. Alexx had to reluctantly trust the old woman and her associates.  
"Alright, what can you tell us about Barnaby?"

Myrtle, with the help of De Silva, cleared a space on the overflowing table. Amadeus unfurled a large, yellowed map across the now empty space, securing the corners with weights you would use on a weighing scale. A map of Kirus, and an ancient one by the looks of it. The country of Astria that lay north of Mabristan had been marked down as Sustral, which hadn't been its name since the age of Karim, not after Aster Valcari took over and named himself king of Mabristan. Over a thousand years and the map survived with surprisingly little blemishes. It was impressive, really, how things withstood the test of time.  
"Now," said Myrtle, hovering her finger over the map. Her eyes were shut tight, deep in concentration. Somewhere behind them De Silva and Amadeus lit candles and scented sticks. Alexx wasn't sure what they were for but thought it better to leave that question unasked and unanswered. She wasn't _that_ desperate. She had assumed it was something witchy, and wanted no part of it.  
The candles flickered, casting wild shadows across the walls. Myrtle's long grey hair filled with static, raising and flaring out. Amadeus took a step forward but got pulled back by De Silva. Alexx stood firmly before her friends, shielding them from whatever might happen.  
Myrtle's eyes snapped open, their dull grey now a purple as they scanned over the map. Her finger dropped down upon the Akeldama border, her head snapping up to look at Alexx. Myrtle's eyes slowly returned to their original colour, Alexx watching her carefully while still shielding her new family.  
"Here," Myrtle tapped the map several times before ushering the group over with her spare hand, "come, I won't bite."  
Alexx steeled herself, flashing a look at the person closest to her, who turned out to be Finn. She joined Myrtle at the table, staring over the map. She really wished that Robin had been there. It had been something that had been buried in the back of her mind, but the man would have come in handy right about now.  
"Here's here," Myrtle tapped the map again, "or will be. Time is a fickle thing to restrain."  
"The...Sangun Pe... _Peaks_?" attempted Alexx, a pained smile on her face, "Uh, yeah, we got this letter, actually."  
"Then _why_ , may I ask, did you require my help?"  
"To...track him down _before_ he crosses the Akeldaman border?"  
"None of you thought of bringing this up?"  
A chorus of apologies came from the bottom of the staircase. Val chimed in with her own, albeit sarcastic sounding. Myrtle heaved a long-suffering sigh, muttering something about _them youngsters_ before telling De Silva to take the crew upstairs and set up tents.

With the tents set up, far larger than the ones they brought with them, they let Finn set up a fire. Alexx lay in the rough grass, a thin layer of sand making it into her shoe, staring up at the clear darkening sky. A cold sea breeze blew, carrying its fresh salty smell.  
The flames crackled, a thick plume of smoke rising to the sky to dance with the stars that gradually began to show in the mass of blue. Finn watched as the wood popped and shifted, sitting so still that he could have been mistaken for a mannequin. They sat, or lay, around in an uncomfortable silence - none of them brave enough to shatter it. Finn's breathing hitched every now again, rife with disappointment and anger.  
"I'm sorry," said Alexx eventually, tilting her head to look up at the Hawthorne. "I shouldn't have gotten your hopes up."  
"It's fine," said Finn monotonously, as if it had been a knee jerk response. As if it was easier.  
"No, Finn. This is on me, but we're _going_ to find him. I promise."  
"This isn't _on_ you, don't be dramatic."  
Alexx's mind returned to what Godfrey had told her back at the manor. Back before she-  
Killed him.  
She killed him. Now that there was a lull, that she wasn't leading a prison break, that she wasn't travelling, she couldn't forget it. She gritted her teeth as she tried to ground herself., sucking in the cool air to sting at her lungs.  
"The Temple -" she started, cursing at herself for how weak her voice sounded, "The Temple only kept me because of who they think is my ancestor. Artemis Valcari. Like it or not, I'm linked to this."  
Finn flinched at the name. Not that she could blame him.  
"That...doesn't mean this is your fault, Alexx," said Rachel softly, looking at her with a new focus. Alexx had never let herself break around her. Not once in five years.  
"Well, are you?" asked Val bluntly, "y'know, the descendant of Artemis?"  
Alexx shrugged, pointedly avoiding eye contact, "I wouldn't know."  
Val hummed in thought but dropped the subject. They descended into silence, either watching the flames grow high into the sky under Finn's power, rising and falling as if it were breathing with him, or watching the sky. Alexx covered her face with her forearms, feigning sleep.  
"Can we really trust Myrtle?" asked Rachel, cutting through the quiet, "considering that she said that Alexx is dead."  
"I haven't been open with any of you," sighed Alexx, "but I'm still all in. We'll find Barnaby, with or without Myrtle's help."  
"Open? Alexx _what_ are you on about?"  
Alexx huffed, hesitating before answering, "I was in the Ironwood Forest for months. My squadron was dwindling, it was down to me, Hawkins, Aiden, Keith and Robin by the end. We were ambushed. Cryptlings ripped me apart, and I guess I died out there. I woke up in my own grave, at least. Myrtle only confirmed my suspicions."  
"Then...what exactly _are_ you?" asked Finn.  
"I... I don't know."  
" _Well_ , if Myrtle's right," Rachel unsubtly changed the subject, "his destination is _still_ the Sanguine Peaks, we can still meet him there and deal with whatever happens," said Rachel, "this isn't over."  
"And we'll fight the devil herself, presumably?" asked Val dryly, in what seemed to be an attempt at humour.  
"If that's what it takes," said Alexx, determined, "It's not as if we have a choice."

It had been sunset when Myrtle called for them again. They sat around her table with fresh bowls of stew in front of them. Bread fresh from the oven was sliced and buttered on a plate in the centre. Alexx idly stirred her stew, pushing quarters of potatoes around in circles. De Silva sat at the head of the table, stew-less, watching over them all as if she was a prison guard. She may as well have been, as her gun lay firmly in her grip.  
Alexx had refused to look at her friends after the reveal. She was a liar at best, and she didn't want to think of worse. Betrayer, maybe. She dreaded to think what Rachel thought of her. Five years of friendship, likely gone. Strained at best.  
"Alexx, what do you think?" asked Val, prodding her to get her attention.  
Alexx snapped out of her thoughts, looking around the group. "I'm sorry, what?"  
"We were thinking of getting transport to the border unless Myrtle here can scrounge up something worthwhile."  
"Do we have the money for that?"  
Val sucked in a breath, sounding close to a hiss, "maybe...no?"  
"I _could_ pull in some favours," offered Rachel, "there's plenty of people here that owe my father, I could cash in on them."  
"Wouldn't he be annoyed?" asked Alexx.  
"Yes, but fuck him."  
"That's certainly _one_ option."  
Alexx went back to pushing her stew around, knowing that she _should_ eat but not feeling the need. Val huffed, glancing at Rachel before she stood from the table.  
"Alexxyn, can we talk?" she asked, although it felt more of a demand than a question, "outside."  
Alexx looked up in confusion but complied. Val had already pointed a gun at her as a _greeting_ , she didn't want to know what she'd do if she declined.

The two wandered into the flatlands that surrounded the area, the rough sand reeds rubbing at their skin through their thin clothes. Val had yet to speak, despite taking Alexx out for that purpose, leading her away from the cabin towards the splattering of trees that cut them off from the neighbouring town.  
"Alright," said Alexx, jaded and mildly annoyed, "what's all this about, Val?"  
"Straight to the point, I admire that," chuckled Val before her expression turned deadly serious, "I know what you are."  
"Yeah? Then _what_ am I?" snapped Alexx in return, " _Moon Blessed_? Night creature? Omera's biggest mistake?"  
"Vampire."  
"A... _what_?"  
"Oh come on, I thought you were smarter than this. You said it yourself, back at that dwarf's aboad-" Val rolled her eyes, quoting with her fingers in a somewhat sarcastic gesture "-' _something we've never seen before_ , that's you!"  
"And _how_ exactly do you know this?"  
"Because guess what, Alexxyn," Val leaned in close, her expression much like a sharpened weapon or the barrel of a gun straining to go off, " _I am too."_


	10. 9

"You're _what_?" asked Alexx, voice dripping disbelief.  
"A _vampire_ , Alexxyn," sighed Val, "keep up, I thought you were clever."  
"You haven't even explained what that _is_!"  
Val huffed, stepping away before deflating, her expression softer, "no, I suppose I haven't."  
Val walked ahead of her, hands linked behind her back with her shoulders straight and proper. Alexx trailed behind, feet shuffling and catching on trodden reeds. Val was silent then, truly silent for the first time since they had met those weeks ago. No running commentary, no snide remarks. She seemed older then. Alexx had always pitched her to be in her mid to late twenties, but now she could easily be in her mid-thirties, perhaps older. Without her youthful grin tugging at her lips, she seemed ageless. Simultaneously old and young. Perhaps that's what a vampire was. What Alexx has become.  
The seemingly older woman stopped suddenly, before a cobblestone pathway that sectioned off the woods from the coast.  
"Who turned you?" she asked, finally breaking the silence.  
"I don't know what you mean."  
"The person who bit you? Surely you know who that is, even if you don't have a name for them."  
"I wasn't bitten," said Alexx softly, confused. Maybe she _hadn't_ been a vampire, that Val was wrong. Gods she hoped Val was wrong.  
"Interesting."  
Val turned her head to regard Alexx, scanning her eyes up and down as if sizing her up. Alexx had never before felt so much like prey, like a meal.  
"Look, Val, I really don't know what you're on about. I'm just a Templar," Alexx shook her head, " _was_ a Templar. I really don't know anything about...vampires."  
"Well, the basis is that you're an undead bloodsucking bitch," shrugged Val, "any abilities, strengths and weaknesses vary from person to person. Some get nothing but the bloodlust."  
"What did you get?"  
Val looked at her properly now, shooting a grin. "I can't lay all my cards on the table, now can I? Gotta keep some mystery."  
"Val, I barely know anything about you."  
"And we'll keep it that way, for now. Keeps things interesting, " she chuckled dryly, "I'll let you know soon enough, for now, you need to drink."  
She reached into her pocket and pulled out her flask, once again offering it to Alexx.  
"I'm good thanks."  
"I don't think you want to murder your ah, _friends_. Now drink."  
Alexx reluctantly took the flask and took a sip. The liquid was thick, tangy, and all too familiar. _Blood._ Had this been what Val had been offering the entire time? Had she _known_ the entire time?  
Alexx choked, messily handing the flask back to Val as she doubled over in a coughing fit.  
"Oh dear," she said in a condescending tone, "you're used to far fresher by now, aren't you?"  
"Fuck you," growled Alexx in return, voice hoarse from near hacking up a lung.  
"Better get used to the older stuff, Alexxyn, you can't always feed fresh."  
Alexx grumbled and straightened up to her full height, crossing her arms.  
"If you figured it out so quickly, how hasn't Rachel?" she asked sceptically, seeing Val in a new light.  
"She's a _pup,"_ Val rolled her eyes, "she's likely never seen anything like us before. I'm sure she knows that there's something up with you, but is too polite to say anything. That's all you'll have with them, quiet politeness."  
"That's not true-"  
"Do you really think they could ever love you?" Val cut across, "do you think they'd still _care_ about you, knowing what you are?"  
"Rachel-"  
"Fuck off, you know better than to think that the alpha would risk her pack for you."  
"I _am_ her pack," growled Alexx again, Val scoffing at the display.  
"Sure you are, a non-werewolf amongst the dogs. That's called a _nicety_ , you're not the same and you'll never be."  
"How can you be so sure?"  
"I've met werewolves, considered myself friends with one, but that didn't stop her from turning on me. Didn't stop her from making me unsafe in my own country."  
Alexx fumed but let Val speak. Val didn't know what Rachel was like, didn't live in close quarters with the woman for half a decade. Alexx was certain that Rachel wouldn't abandon her, not over this.  
"Your experiences are not universal," huffed Alexx, turning on a heel to storm back to the cabin.  
"They're a warning, Alexxyn."

It had been truly nighttime when they arrived back, full moon hanging proudly in the sky. They walked in silence, for the most part, besides Val occasionally repeating her messages of betrayal. Alexx had stopped listening to her midway through their journey, focusing on the walk ahead and the moon that poked its way through the clouds.  
Rachel had rarely shifted. Alexx's presence alone was usually enough to stop the process in its tracks. She wasn't sure the logistics behind it, she never thought to ask in detail, but it had something to do with being connected to a non-werewolf loved one. She dreaded to think what she'd return to. She could only hope that she had still been close though for her presence to work.  
As if some horrible deity had listened to her thoughts, a howl pierced the air. Alexx cursed under her breath and ran the last few minutes to the cabin, feeling lighten on her feet - _foot-_ than she had in a while.  
The door of the cabin hung open, swinging on it's one remaining hinge. Finn shoved De Silva back into the building with a grunt. She caught his eyes and he nodded, pointing towards the town and taking off, with Alexx not too far behind him.  
The town quickly came into view, the streets and surrounding area more full than Alexx had seen that day. The townsfolk ran from the vicinity in thick crowds, upper and lower meshed together, united in their fear.

A powerful, penetrating growl sounded through the area, but its owner was nowhere to be found. Alexx unsheathed her sword, using it's light as a torch, holding it aloft.  
"Rachel?" she called, eyes searching the horizon.  
"I don't she'll listen when she's like this, Al," said Finn softly, panting slightly.  
"She'll listen to _me_."  
Val scoffed, "Do you know anything about werewolves, Alexxyn?"  
Alexx ignored her, heading into the town.

Drinking from a fountain in the upper half, was a creature that could easily be larger than any of the houses in the lower half. Dark fur jutted from its head to tail from cracked skin that slowly sewed itself back together. Its forelegs could easily be larger than Alexx herself, thick with muscle and sinew. It stopped drinking as Alexx approached slowly, lifting it's large head and regarding her with large amber eyes.  
"Hey Rachel," murmured Alexx.  
Rachel growled in response, ears pressed down against her head and lips pulled back into a snarl. Alexx sighed, lowering her blade and backing away a few paces.  
"It's alright Ray, it's just me. It's just Cooper."  
She flashed a look at Finn and Val, Finn nodding and pulling Val away, remaining close enough to step in if necessary. Val didn't seem overly pleased with the idea, but Alexx didn't have time to spare her feelings. She needed to help her friend.  
Rachel growled again, standing hackles raised as if ready to pounce. Alexx backed away again, dropping to her knees and looking up at what had become of her friend. She hoped that she seemed non-threatening enough to not be attacked as Rachel slowly made her way over.  
Alexx stayed still as Rachel sniffed the air in front of her. In all her years of knowing her, it had been a rare sight to see her turn. The same with the majority of the pack. They had accepted her as one of their own, and it seemed to efficiently curb their shifting. Alexx could count on once hand how many times she'd witnessed any of them after shifting, Rachel least of all.  
Rachel shook her head and snarled, Alexx's heart jumping into her throat.  
"Rachel - stop," she said in what she hoped was reminiscent of the tone she used as Captain. "You know me, you're fine. You're safe."  
Rachel grumbled again, more of a huff this time than a threat of violence. Alexx slowly held her hand out, palm facing outwards. Rachel tensed again, sniffing the air between them. Alexx held her hand out a little further, and something snapped within her friend. Her friend-turned-wolf snarled again, leaping over Alexx's kneeling form. Alexx cursed, getting up on shaky legs.  
"Told you that you weren't pack," sighed Val, coming to her side and letting her lean on the shorter woman, "you got your hopes up."  
"You don't know her like I do," grumbled Alexx, pulling away from her fellow vampire. "Come on, we need to catch up to her before someone hurts her."

Alexx ignored any pain in her leg as she followed the trail of discarded fur. It was phantom regardless, she could pull through this. Still, her body screamed from kneeling. Val kept looking at her as if she was pitiful as if she hadn't already felt that way.  
Finn took the lead, moving quicker than Alexx could at that moment. He looked back at her every now and then as she hobbled behind him. Another howl pierced the air, ear-splitting and disorientating. Alexx groaned, doubling over as she covered her ears.  
The growling turned into whining, long and pained, the closer they got to a warehouse, presumably where the fishing supplies were kept.  
The large wooden door creaked open as Finn pushed his way in, Alexx following closely behind. Three men stood in the centre barring fishing poles and spears, before them was the largest wolf they've ever seen. Rachel snapped at them, pushing them back momentarily before they lunged for her again. Alexx growled and ran in, ignoring the pain in her leg, sword raised and ready.  
She caught the closest man, taking him by surprise as she slashed down hard at his neck with a sickening _crunch._ He fell to the ground, spewing blood from his nearly severed head as the other two men turned towards the new danger. Finn summoned his flames, his hands blackening and charring, veins setting themselves alight. One of the men threw his spear at the Hawthorne man, only for it to be caught mid-air by Val. She laughed darkly, spinning the spear in her hands before she launched it back at the man, pinning him to the wall through his shoulder. The last man, the largest of the three, focused his attempts on the large wolf form of Rachel Godrick. She stood on three paws instead of four, bleeding profusely from wounds that tried to heal but ripped open at her movements.  
The man that Val had speared ripped the weapon from his wound with a hiss. He had been bleeding heavily, but that hadn't stopped him from facing the trio again. He glared at them, raising his hand to his wound, tendrils of light squirming out of his skin like snakes. His shoulder slowly healed, and with a reenergized grin, he charged.  
Finn blocked his path with a ribbon of flame. A thick plume of fire that danced from floor to ceiling in a wide loop. The other man backed away at Val advanced towards the one attacking Rachel. Alexx growled, deep and reverberating through her entire body, her blood boiling. She lunged at the man in front of Finn, muscles repeating training regimes that she was raised on. Finn served at backup, lashing out with his magic whenever it seemed that their opponent was too close to hitting Alexx, or pressing him back into the fight whenever he backed away.  
Val threw the larger of the two men over their heads, his body crashing into barrels of fish. He groaned, shakily getting up before Val casually pulled out her gun, shooting a single bullet that put him down for good. The final man took his chances and fled, Alexx lunging to go after him only to be held back by Finn's rough hand on her shoulder.  
"Easy," he said softly, "it's over."  
Alexx nodded, patting his hand before pulling away to check on Rachel.

Rachel, despite being in her towering wolf form, had never looked so small. She had curled herself between the stacks of hay, not even beginning to conceal herself. Alexx let out a shaky breath, approaching the oversized wolf. She had to try again. For her friend.  
"It's okay, its just us," she said softly, choosing not to kneel again after cracking her knees earlier. Rachel grumbled, more broken that a true growl. Alexx held her hand out again, and when her friend didn't object, she placed it behind Rachel's large ear and stroking it gently. Rachel leaned into the touch, her form slowly contracting. Breaking and cracking as it reformed her friend's human form. Alexx held her gently as it happened, offering comfort in the painful process as Rachel groaned and cried out.  
Rachel - the true, _human_ Rachel - lay in her arms, disorientated and blinking at her surroundings. Finn shrugged off his long coat and lay it over her nude form, smiling awkwardly and backing away. Alexx carefully helped Rachel to her feet, looping the taller woman's arm around her shoulders for stability as she shot a ' _told you so'_ look at Val.  
Rachel leaned heavily on Alexx, stifling a yawn with her natural hand, the other presumably had still been on the floor of Myrtle's cabin, flung off as she turned. Alexx had no choice but to hold Rachel by the wrist, above the stub that was left behind, in order to keep her stable. Val rolled her eyes, leading the remaining trio out of the warehouse and into the night.

Myrtle had gladly sent them off with a flask of stew in exchange that they never returned. It seemed like a fair exchange, especially since Alexx hadn't planned on ever coming back to Northbridge. If things went well, she would never have to return to Shales unless it was on her own terms. Syi Dorei called her name, and the possibility of returning seemed closer than ever. Now that she had cut ties with the Temple, or what she had hoped would send that message, she could truly settle down in the most faithful definition to that. The thought was terrifying.  
She had never had the luxury of choice before. Her life had been set out, that she'd serve the Temple, train with the best at the Academy, and likely die serving them. The freedom was a strange, but not unwelcome feeling.  
All she had to do was find Sir Barnaby. Preferably alive, although she was sure she'd have somewhat of a finder's reward regardless.

Alexx had fallen back into her leadership position, following directions of those who'd willingly listen to the scrappy group, travelling further south to the border. It had taken several weeks, and they had given up any hope of finding Sir Barnaby Daniels in Adanak and set course for Akeldama.  
Rachel had called in a few favours in a blossoming town that was under the governing of one of her father's business friends and had managed to borrow a car for the rest of the journey. With no arguments, she had become the designated driver, since neither Alexx, nor Finn knew how to drive, and none felt comfortable with Val behind the wheel. Alexx had lost any trust she had for her fellow vampire, but ultimately decided that the group would be better off with Val's skills should they be needed.  
Alexx sat in the passenger seat next to Rachel, legs crossed and hanging out the window, despite Rachel's warning's that _she really shouldn't do that._ Finn snored loudly from the backseat, with Val at his side stating fact about Akeldama she thought they should know before entering. The customs hadn't been any different to what they had experienced in Adanak, but from Val's description, it sounded far more cutthroat.  
"You know I'm from there, right?" asked Rachel, looking in the rearview mirror to check up on their unnecessary tour guide. "I still have family down South."  
"Hey, I'm just saying it's interesting," defended Val, crossing her arms and returning to stare out the window like a child with a tantrum. She had acted quite similar to one, despite her questionable age.  
"Alright, well, you know anything about the mountains?"  
"Oh, the Sanguines? They say it gets its name for all the blood spilt there."  
Alexx sighed, leaning her head back into the plush seat. She had given up on picking at her nails hours ago and was craving something to do.  
"Of course it's about _blood_ with you," she sighed, closing her eyes.  
"Hey, I was asked, and there's the answer."  
They fell into silence, Alexx not wanting to argue, and Val not wanting to out herself as what she was. Alexx figured that she should tell the others, at least Rachel, about her recent development, but Val's words stuck in her mind. She had no idea if Rachel could truly stick by her once she knew. Finn, despite her calling him a friend in recent times, was still her coworker who went above and beyond for their boss. She could, perhaps, take the secret to her second grave. The notion was tempting. To never utter a word on her new dark path of life. She knew that she'd have to reveal herself sooner or later, but until then she planned on living as if nothing had changed.  
But everything had changed. She could be free for the first time since she was a child, yet shackled by a secret she wished she didn't need to keep. She had already lost her life once, but to lose it again while still living was daunting. She'd keep her identity to herself until her inevitable second death.

The car pulled up to a heavily guarded strip of land. The border. They'd made it. Alexx wished she could feel excitement but Val seemed eerily filled with glee. Val practically hung out of the window as they stopped, grinning at the new sights. Alexx had pulled her legs back into the car, not wanting to appear similar to the white-haired woman.  
Rachel spoke to the guards, explaining why they were crossing and roughly how long. One of the guards nodded, leaving to circle the car. Another opened the boot then slamming it shut again. The first guard nodded at them, letting them pass through.  
Alexx wasn't sure why, but she thought that passing the border would feel like _more._ It was much of the same, concrete and large buildings that had been constructed in the past two decades. It hadn't been like entering Mabristan at all. There was no juxtaposition of technology or the outdated builds of the past century. Shales had moved on with the times, while Mabristan and its neighbouring countries of Astria and Bannaheimr held onto the past. Of its glory days. Their Queen had refused change, much like her father before her, and every royal dating back to Aster Valcari, the first King of Mabristan. Shales' governments had somewhat listened to the needs of its people and had allowed growth.

Mountains could already be seen in the distance, a wine red against the soft blue of the sky. From here it looked as if they were never-ending, the peaks nowhere to be seen. Val sat forward in her seat, patting Alexx's shoulder and pointing towards the mountains.  
"Now, d'you see _why_ they're called the Sanguine Peaks?" she asked, a cocky tone to her voice. "You try telling me it _doesn't_ look like blood."  
"Alright, fine," sighed Alexx, "you win."  
"God damn, I haven't been back here in years," reminisced Val, leaning back once more. "Might even catch up with my daughter."  
"Hold up," said Finn, frowning in confusion, " _you_ have a _child_?"  
"Oh, yeah. Sorry, thought I had mentioned it."  
"You definitely didn't," chipped in Rachel, luckily not taking her eyes off of the road before her.  
"She lives near the Sanguines. Might pop in and see how she's holding up."  
"I'm sorry, can we go back to the fact that you have a _child?"_ asked Alexx, turning to look at Val through the gap between her and Rachel's seats, "how old _are_ you?"  
Val grimaced and waved her hand back and forth as if tipping a scale. Alexx stared at her in disbelief before sitting back in her seat.  
Alexx wasn't sure if she _actually_ wanted to know Val's age in case it was a horribly high number. Like eighty. She wasn't sure if she could handle living as an ageless being herself at an age like that. Alexx was _twenty_ for crying out loud, she didn't want to be twenty for the rest of her life. What would her life even _look_ like if that was the case? Children? Gods forbid _grand_ children? Would she have to play the strange aunt, or face the fact that her grandchildren would one day out-age her? Alexx was hating the whole 'vampire' thing more and more by the second. She wished she had never asked Val her age.

Her spiralling was interrupted by Rachel stopping the car outside the mouth of a cave. Val could barely wait, hopping out before Rachel could use the handbrake and walking towards the great bleeding maw.  
"This is it," whistled Rachel, looking up in awe before she too got out, Finn and Alexx following suit, "welcome to the Sanguine Peaks."

**Author's Note:**

> Twitter: @KitWynter  
> Tumblr: GoblinGraveyard


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